Welcome to Hogwarts
by Dokkou
Summary: YYHxHP The Tantei have a new mission--protecting Harry Potter from Voldemort! And to do that, the four will have to go to Hogwarts and pose as wizard students! how in the four worlds will they survive? year five; after the D.T. NO Yoai. Going great!
1. The Messages and the Explanation

Dokkou: Okay, ppl, here i am with another story. only this one centers around yu yu hakusho AND Harry Potter! I know that this concept has been done before A LOT but i just couldn't stop the inspiration from popping out of my head. So, here's my newest story. Hopefull it will be more popular than my other one, which only got 11 reviews in the long months it's been up.

Hm...I'm pretty sure there will be a HieixOC later on as well. Kurama too, possibly. I dunno. The idea's still new. So with that ominous thought in mind, sit back and enjoy my story!

Kurama: Also she doesn't own Yu Yu Hakusho or Harry Potter.

Dokkou: Yeah that too. though I don't know why I bother saying that. everyone KNOWS I don't own Harry Potter OR Yu Yu Hakusho. . Sigh...not that that's a good thing...

* * *

Welcome to Hogwarts

10-15-07

The Messages and the Explanation

"What's the matter, Kuwabara? Tired already?"

"No way, Urameshi! You're going down!" Kuwabara panted, scrambling up.

"Then bring it on!" Yusuke grinned, readying himself.

He and Kuwabara were sparring at Genkai's temple to let off some of the steam that their everyday lives built up. Yukina, Keiko, Botan, and Genkai were watching the fight from the sidelines; Genkai occasionally snapping criticisms at them, Botan, Keiko, and Yukina cheering them on.

"Go Yusuke!" Keiko shouted.

"You can do it, Kazuma!" At the sound of Yukina's voice, Kuwabara puffed out his chest and said, "Urameshi, you might as well give up! With my love, Yukina cheering me on, there's no way I can lose! I'm invincible! I fear nothing!" At that moment, a large gray owl dove down and started attacking Kuwabara's head.

"Agh!! Get it off me!! Get it off me!!" he screamed. Yusuke laughed until another owl, light brown, swooped down and landed primly on his head. His eye twitched.

"Stupid bird," Yusuke growled, raising a hand to swat it off.

"Wait, Yusuke, there's something tied to its leg!" Keiko cried. Yusuke blinked and pulled the paper off the owl's leg. It gave a satisfied hoot and soared off.

"It's an envelope!" Yusuke said in surprise, reading the address.

Mr. Y. Urameshi

Training Grounds

Genkai's Temple, Japan

"What the…" the four girls came over and looked at the sealed envelope curiously.

The gray owl was still harassing Kuwabara.

"'Dear Mister Urameshi," Yusuke read out loud, ignoring his orange-haired friend, "We are pleased to inform you that you have been invited to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. Term begins on September 1st. We await your owl by no later than July 31st. Yours Sincerely, Minerva McGonagall, deputy headmistress." He looked up at the girls in confusion.

"Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry?" Keiko said, "Is this some kind of joke?"

"If it is," said Yusuke, inflating like an angry bullfrog, "there's only one person I can think of who would send this."

"Are you thinking of Koenma?" Botan asked him. "I suppose it's a possibility, but Koenma is awfully busy all the time…"

"Well he's pretty good at fitting time in his schedule to bug me. Kuwabara, we're going to Spirit World," growled Yusuke. Kuwabara ran into a tree and the gray owl sat smugly on his head.

* * *

"Take the square root of 144, multiply by ten and divide by pi, then add the mean to…"

_Tap tap tap._

Kurama blinked and looked up from his math homework.

_Tap tap tap._ Kurama's head snapped around to the window.

A large and rather beautiful white owl illuminated by the sun was standing on the outside sill, tapping the glass with its tiny black beak. Kurama blinked again.

"Hello, where did you come from?" He crossed his room and opened the window. The owl glided in and settled on top of Kurama's math textbook. The redhead looked at it in confusion. Owls were rarely seen during the day, and for one to suddenly just fly into his room in broad daylight was just plain unnatural.

It was then he noticed the owl had something tied to its leg—a piece of paper, it looked like.

"Now what's this?" Kurama murmured, pulling the paper off the scaly leg. The owl gave an amiable hoot and soared back out the window into the blue sky.

Kurama stared at the parchment envelope in his hands. Who still uses parchment? It's so old-fashioned. He read the spidery green writing on the front:

Mr. S. Minamino

Second Floor

Third Room on the Left

Tokyo, Japan

"How did they know…?" Now becoming suspicious, he tore open the envelope (neatly of course) and took out another piece of parchment, which he scanned over quickly.

"Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry? What on Earth?" He frowned and sat at his desk, math homework forgotten. "If this is a prank, it certainly is an elaborate one. Sending a letter by an owl..?" He thought for a moment, then got up out of his chair and hustled downstairs.

_This doesn't seem like a prank. I think I should ask Koenma about this._

"Goodness, Dear, where's the fire?" His mother asked him from the sofa.

"Oh, it's nothing, Mother, I'm just going out for a short while." Kurama said, pulling on a green and brown jacket. "I'll be back soon, I promise."

"Wait, Shuichi, where are you going?" His mother cried.

"To a friend's house," Kurama half-lied, "I just remembered that I left one of my textbooks at his house." And he quickly walked out the door and closed it behind him before his mother could say another word. He hated lying to her, but sometimes it was necessary.

"Alright, Koenma, you've got some explaining to do."

* * *

A small figure clad in black with gravity-defying black hair leaped up into the branches of an enormous oak tree in a small forest. He settled on one of the largest limbs and sighed.

Hiei was almost dying of boredom. He was still on his stupid probation, meaning he couldn't go to Demon World and get some actual exercise with the indigenous demons. There was nothing to do in the Human World except meander around and sleep, and Hiei had wandered around the city and surrounding forests so many times, he could find his way around blindfolded by now. Though he had to admit, one better thing about the Human World than the Demon World was that fewer things were liable to attack you when you slept. That and he'd begun to like the trees here in the Human World. Very little of its foliage had spiky bark and poisonous leaves.

Hiei swung his leg nonchalantly in the air and felt his eyelids droop and his naturally tense body relax. He'd taken a few laps around the city, but that had still been very monotonous. All in all, it had been a very tedious day.

Just as he was about to drift off to sleep, his eyes snapped open at the sound of wing beats. His demon energy flared threateningly and then an ash-gray owl with black and white spots landed fearfully on the end of his branch. When he realized that it was just an ordinary bird, Hiei's energy died down.

"Beat it," he snarled. The owl hopped back nervously, but didn't take flight. In fact, a second later, it was tentatively shuffling toward him. Hiei watched it with a hint of admiration. Any other creature he snarled at would have fled as though all Hell was on their back. But this owl was obviously determined to get close to him. So, curious, Hiei allowed it to approach. When it was only a foot away, the owl emitted an uneasy hoot and stuck its leg out, to which an envelope was tied. Feeling a prickle of interest, Hiei reached out and pulled the parchment off the owl's leg. The owl immediately took off as fast as it could.

Hiei read the front of the envelope and his interest, now tinged with suspicion, grew.

Mr. H. Jaganshi

17th Branch Up

Oak Tree

Wirakuum Park

He ripped the envelope open and read it with a scowl.

"Hogwarts?" he snorted, "What kind of name is Hogwarts?" The envelope began to smoke in his hand. "I know you have something to do with this," he said softly, looking up at the sky. "Koenma."

The envelope burst into flame.

* * *

Koenma sat distractedly at his desk stamping papers which he didn't even bother reading.

Stamp stamp stamp.

"Any minute now," he murmured.

Stamp stamp stamp.

There was a resounding crash in the hall outside his office door.

"My, my," a voice said, "Could that be them?"

Stamp stamp stamp.

"My friend," Koenma sighed, looking round at the ancient man sitting in a chair next to him, "it couldn't be anyone else."

BOOM! The doors to the study flew open so hard they bounced off the walls.

"Goodness, what an entrance," the old man said in amusement.

"KOENMA!" Kuwabara marched up to Koenma, not even noticing the old man, and slammed his fists on the desk. "You've got some explaining to do! Look what your stupid owl did to me!" Koenma drew back and stared at the furious carrot-top.

Kuwabara's face and arms were covered in small bleeding cuts and bruises. His blue school uniform had tears and rips all over it. _It's an improvement, if you ask me,_ Koenma thought dryly.

"Jeez, Kuwabara, why are you getting so worked up? I've done way worse to you and you didn't complain this much." Koenma looked past Kuwabara to see Yusuke stroll in, closely followed by Botan.

Said ferry girl giggled, "He's just upset because he got beaten up by a night-flying chicken!" They both burst into laughter.

"Shut up!" Kuwabara yelled, rounding on them, "That bird was possessed, I tell you! It was attacking me for no reason!"

"I'm sorry to say this, but you tempt many people to attack you for no reason. Perhaps it's you hair style…" a thoughtful, soft voice said. Everyone looked around to see a familiar teenager with long red hair walk into the room.

"Kurama?" Yusuke said in surprise, "What are you doing here?"

"I came for the same reason you did." He held up the parchment letter.

"Hey! You got one too!" Kuwabara yelled, holding up his own invitation.

"So that makes three," Yusuke said.

"Hn. Four, you baka." Everyone (except Kurama) jumped slightly at the deep voice that issued from the shadows of the doors. Hiei stepped into the light, hands jammed into his pockets and an annoyed scowl on his face.

"Hiei! So you're here too," Yusuke said, ignoring the baka comment.

"Yes." Hiei turned his head. "Who are you?" he said rudely to the old man.

"Whoa! When did he get here?" Kuwabara shouted, staring at the stranger. Botan and Kurama sighed and Yusuke said scathingly, "He's been here the whole time, stupid."

"Oh… HEY WAIT A SECOND! I'm not stupid!" Kuwabara roared, which promptly led to a small scuffle that ended with both him and Yusuke trying to strangle each other on the ground.

While they were fighting, Koenma stacked a pile of papers on his desk and motioned to Botan. She came over to his desk.

"I need you to take these papers to the third floor, second office on the left. They're very important documents that must be delivered to their selected addresses immediately," said Koenma importantly. Botan looked at the swaying stack then looked at Koenma and pursed her lips.

"You didn't even read any of these papers, did you, Sir?" She said in a flat voice. Koenma coughed a little and said, "That's beside the point. Just take the papers to the office." Botan shook her head in exasperation but didn't dare disobey a direct order. She carefully took the papers in her arms and swept out of the office. She stopped at the door for a second and one look could tell clearly that she would rather stay and find out what all the fuss was about, but she had a job to do. So with a disappointed sigh, she strode out the doors, which automatically closed behind her.

Kurama gazed at the old the old man with polite interest. He was wearing a long blue robe and hat, both decorated with silver stars. A pair of twinkling blue eyes full of polite amusement and kindness surveyed the world over half-moon spectacles. He was giving off a very unusual aura, one that would rival a B-class or even lower A-class demon. In other words, this man could rival him and Hiei, and maybe beat them in a fight. Interesting.

Koenma finally lost patience with the two human Tantei.

"Will you two stop rolling around on the floor like immature children?!" He yelled.

"You're one to talk, Toddler," said Yusuke, shoving Kuwabara's fist down his own throat.

"Yusuke, Kuwabara, could you please stop fighting? I thought we came here to find out what the letters were about," said Kurama patiently. Yusuke blinked.

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot." The spirit detective stood and pulled Kuwabara to his feet. "So Pacifier-Breath, what's the deal with those air-mail letters?"

"Perhaps I should let my companion explain that, as he is the one who sent the invitations." The young ruler motioned to the old man, who stood up and swept his penetrating blue eyes over Yusuke, Kuwabara, Kurama, and Hiei (who was leaning against the wall looking bored and irritable).

"My name is Albus Dumbledore," the man said, "I am the headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

"So that place really exists? People really learn magic there?" Kuwabara cut in.

"Only certain people can learn to use magic—more specifically, witches and wizards."

"Are you supposed to be a wizard?" Hiei grunted.

"Why yes I am." Dumbledore smiled. Hiei looked him up and down.

"Prove it."

"As you wish," said Dumbledore simply. He reached into the sleeve of his blue robe and pulled out a long wooden sick. He waved it around in the air and then flicked it hard. Immediately a vase filled with golden flowers appeared on Koenma's desk.

"Cool!" Kuwabara and Yusuke chorused with grins, while Kurama's eyebrows rose a little. Hiei pursed his lips but looked convinced.

"Anyway, I came to visit my dear old friend Koenma because I have been under a lot of stress lately. I told him of a very dire situation that has the Wizarding world in an uproar. It must have been fate that we came to the subject of you, the Spirit Detectives. Koenma told me about your exceptional abilities, and I at once realized that you four are just the people I need."

"What for?" asked Kuwabara.

"I need you to go under the guise of students at my school and protect one of my pupils named Harry Potter. You see, the dire situation is that an extremely powerful and terrible wizard has returned to power, and is now targeting Harry's life. Harry needs to be guarded in secret."

"Forget it," Hiei's cold voice rang out. "I'm not wasting my valuable time protecting some sniveling human." So saying, the short demon strode for the door.

"Please, hear me out," Dumbledore said calmly. As he reached for the doorknob, Hiei felt a sudden tug on the back of his cloak. He blinked in bewilderment and felt some sort of force pull him gently but firmly into the middle of the room and steer him next to Kurama. Yusuke and Kuwabara exchanged surprised looks. Hiei glared at the old wizard, but his gaze now held wariness and a hint of grudging respect.

"Thank you," said Dumbledore graciously. "Now back to what I was saying. I require you four to protect Harry and the school from the evil wizard, whose name is Voldemort. Unfortunately, many people fear his name as well as himself so he should be referred to as He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named or You-Know-Who."

"Kinda wordy, ain't it?" said Yusuke, scratching his head, "can't we just call him Bob or Joe or something?"

"I am afraid that would not be wise," Dumbledore sighed. "The people of my world have become so fearful of Lord Voldemort, they don't dare to even speak his name aloud."

"If you don't mind me asking," Kurama said softly, "could you tell us more about this Harry Potter and Wizarding world you claim is real?"

"Certainly," Dumbledore smiled. He was beginning to like that calm, polite young man. It was hard to believe Koenma's story that Kurama harbored a three-hundred-year-old demon fox inside him.

Dumbledore gave them a brief explanation of wizard's secret existence and of Harry's past four years at Hogwarts. He also told them of Voldemort's uprising, the trouble he was causing, and how it was all being blindly ignored because the wizarding community was too afraid to admit he had returned. He told them the momentous things Harry had done each year, and about his experience in the graveyard only last year.

"Man, sounds like this kid had it almost as bad as me," Yusuke commented. By the end of Dumbledore's explanation, Hiei was the only one who still didn't look ready to jump on a train and be a hero.

"I'm sure the Detective, the Oaf, and Kurama can handle this by themselves. I'm busy, and besides, I don't mingle with humans, even magical ones," Hiei said stiffly. At this, Dumbledore stood up and everyone realized just how tall (and intimidating) he was. The old wizard wondered if the little demon was trying to be difficult on purpose.

"Hiei, would you really turn your back on a world that is falling apart?" Dumbledore's voice was soft, but everyone felt the tension in the room. "Would you really allow an evil man to destroy the lives of innocents by killing and torturing those who opposed him? Would you allow him to annihilate the Human World, Spirit World, and Demon World to get what he wants?"

Red eyes met blue. The temperature in the room seemed to rise ten degrees.

"Would you allow him to hurt someone you loved?" the question hung in the air like a poisonous miasma. And then, unbelievably, Hiei broke the gaze and looked at the floor.

"No." he whispered. Immediately, the temperature returned to normal, and Dumbledore smiled cheerfully.

"Excellent. Now that you all know what is at stake, there is little else I can say, at least that applies to this situation. For example I could rant on about the lovely vacation I had in Mozambique a few months ago but I do not think it would hold your attention." And with that, he sat back down in his chair.

"Good, we've talked enough. Let's go already!" said Yusuke eagerly. Koenma grinned.

"I'm glad you're so enthusiastic, because I was going to force you all onto this mission anyway," the tiny prince said. To Dumbledore he whispered, "I should have you give out pep speeches like that to my hockey team!"

* * *

Dokkou: Okay there's chapter one. hope it wasn't too lame or boring. Now a sneak peek...

Next chapter--Onward to the Leaky Cauldron!!

Summary: the tantei get some final advice and then they begin their journey to the Leak Couldron and Diagon Alley.

Reviews and constructive criticisms REALLY appreciated. If you didn't like it, tell me why so that I can make it better.


	2. To the Leaky Cauldron!

_Previously..._

"_Excellent. Now that you all know what is at stake, there is little else I can say, at least that applies to this situation. For example I could rant on about the lovely vacation I had in Mozambique a few months ago but I do not think it would hold your attention." And with that, he sat back down in his chair._

"_Good, we've talked enough. Let's go already!" said Yusuke eagerly. Koenma grinned._

"_I'm glad you're so enthusiastic, because I was going to force you all onto this mission anyway." To Dumbledore he whispered, "I should have you give out pep speeches like that to my hockey team!"

* * *

_

Dokkou: Ah my second chapter...here it comes.

#1 I would like to thank all my lovely reviewers from the bottom of my heart. I know that in every other HPxYYH story I've read, Hiei and Kurama looked down on wizards like they were all weaklings, Dumbledore included. Well news flash, Dumbledore is NOT a weakling. He could probably beat Kurama and Hiei if he really wanted to, so thats how I'm going to write this story. Hiei and Kurama ARE NOT invincible, much as I hate to admit it, and wizardkind CAN surprise them.

#2 Hiei's last name in my story is Jaganshi because everyone else seems to use it and it does sound kinda cool...

#3 this is _not_ a yaoi story and is not going to _be _a yaoi story. _Evar._ Sorry if you're into that stuff but I'm just not.

#4 I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho, yadda yadda yadda...I don't own Harry Potter yadda yadda yadda...now that that's over with, back to the story!!

* * *

To the Leaky Cauldron!

Now that it was decided they were all going, Dumbledore told them that they would be spending the remaining three weeks before term at a place called the Leaky Cauldron. It was the also the secret entrance to a bazaar called Diagon Alley, where the Tantei would purchase all of their school supplies, for they would be posing as foreign exchange students from Japan. Only a select few teachers would be told who the four really were, and none of the students would know at all, especially not Harry.

"Why can't anyone know who we are?" Kuwabara had asked.

"Because," Dumbledore answered, "if the students found out, it would cause chaos. You see wizards are as ignorant of demons as muggles are of wizards. To know that demons existed would make the wizarding community frightened of them, when they should be worrying about Voldemort. And besides, Harry would be scared to know that he has to be protected everywhere he goes and, as I am fond of the boy, I would prefer that not to happen."

"How many teachers know about us?" asked Yusuke.

"Only about three teachers will be aware of your true identity: professors McGonagall, Snape, and myself." Dumbledore replied.

"Why so few?" asked Kurama curiously.

"The more people who know the truth about you, the more likely you are to be discovered," explained Dumbledore.

"Huh, that makes sense," said Kuwabara, folding his arms and nodding wisely, which caused Hiei to snort.

"Does Voldemort know demons exist?" inquired Kurama.

"He does, but he only knows about the few, relatively weak demons that exist in the Human World. He does not know that there is an entire world of them, which is fortunate; I am afraid that if he could gather allies from the Demon World, he would be near invincible."

"True," Hiei grunted from his dark corner.

"Hold the phone a second," Yusuke suddenly shouted, "are we actually going to have to do all the homework and stuff? We're just supposed to protect some kid, not actually join the Wizard World!"

"The boy cannot know he is being guarded," said Koenma testily from his desk. "He needs to be watched by you four in secret. And the best way to pull that off is for you all to act as normal as possible. That means you are going to be full-on students at Hogwarts."

"I didn't sign up for that!" Yusuke yelled, "We shouldn't have to do all the work! We're trying to save the world!"

"Yes," Koenma snapped, "but to do that, you have to blend in and deal with it! If you're given special release from homework at the school, the students will get suspicious." Yusuke snarled like a caged animal but was unable to argue with the logic of the tiny prince's words.

"Hey, I just thought of something," Kuwabara said, "we don't speak English! How are we gonna talk to everyone?"

"You needn't worry about that, Kuwabara," said Dumbledore, "your language barrier will be no problem, not if you have these little beauties." Dumbledore held out his hand and showed Yusuke, Kurama, and Kuwabara four tiny blue pills. Dumbledore had a feeling Hiei could see the pills as well, even though he was twenty feet away. "These are called Culture Capsules. Swallowing one will allow a person to speak a designated language quite fluently. They come in handy when sudden business trips call wizards to foreign countries. Most of the Capsules' effects wear off after a few days, but I managed to acquire the very rare, and may I say expensive, Capsules that allow you to speak the language for years after being swallowed. And as an added bonus, you are still capable of switching back to your native tongue whenever the urge arises. They also added the new and convenient feature of allowing you to read the designated language as well." Yusuke, Kurama and Kuwabara each took a pill and swallowed it. Dumbledore felt a breath of wind and when he looked down at his palm, he saw that the last pill had disappeared. He looked up at Hiei. The small demon was still leaning up against the wall, but he was now making a face as he swallowed something.

"Yuck!" Yusuke exclaimed, sticking his tongue out, "That tastes disgusting!"

"Unpleasant, but efficient," said Dumbledore. "Now as for the time of your departure. You will be leaving for the Leaky Cauldron in two days, so go home and pack and rest." His icy blue gaze swept across them all, and when he spoke next, his voice was serious. "Now, I want to make sure that you are all aware that you will be spending almost the entire school year at Hogwarts. So you need to prepare your family and friends for your absences. You will have two days to get ready, so return here on Saturday."

"The whole year?!" Yusuke said in amazement. "I didn't realize how long that was until just now…" He looked at the floor and Dumbledore smiled.

"Don't worry, I and the castle staff will do our best to make you feel at home, and I'm sure you'll make plenty of friends. And there are several holiday breaks scattered throughout the months, so you'll have a number of chances to go home."

"How are we getting there?" asked Kurama. Dumbledore winked and said, "You'll find out on Saturday."

* * *

The day after the next, the gang of four was once again in Koenma's office. It was about 1:00 PM. Neither Dumbledore nor Koenma were present. When the four arrived at the palace that morning via Botan, they had simply been told to wait in the office for Koenma and Dumbledore's returns. So now Kuwabara, Kurama and Yusuke stood before Koenma's empty desk holding blue, green, and red luggage bags. Hiei was leaning against the wall with a small and somewhat empty-looking black duffel bag hanging off his shoulder. His eyes were closed and he was completely ignoring the conversation going on between his companions:

"Man, last night was pretty cool," Kuwabara was saying with a grin, "I was speaking English to everyone and they were pretty impressed!"

"Were they now?" Kurama laughed, "Everyone was impressed?"

"Well, okay, not everyone," Kuwabara admitted. "Actually, my friends didn't believe me and thought I was just talking nonsense, and my sister got really tired of it and kept hitting me over the head. She said she'd be glad I wouldn't be around for almost a year. " He grinned suddenly. "But it sure was fun insulting them in English and they didn't even know what I was saying!" Yusuke laughed and Kurama shook his head. "How about you, Kurama?"

Kurama squirmed a little. "Well, I couldn't just go and say to my mother that I was going to a magical school to bodyguard a young wizard, so I had no other option but to lie. I told her I was going to a college in Britain to see what it was like and perhaps even join when I leave high school. She believed me, of course…" Kurama trailed off, clearly not happy.

Yusuke broke the mood by saying, "My night wasn't bad. I had to tell Keiko where I was going and I expected her to be really mad. But she was actually really excited for me." Yusuke scratched his head. "I guess she wants me to learn how to pull a fluffy pink bunny out of a hat."

"Why would she want a fluffy pink bunny?" Kuwabara asked, "She already has a fluffy blue penguin."

"You mean Puu?" Yusuke said lazily, "Yeah, I guess that's true."

"I wonder if we are even capable of learning magic," said Kurama thoughtfully, "we aren't magical, though we do have higher levels of spirit energy. Will that be enough?"

"Actually it will be," a familiar voice said from nowhere. Dumbledore and Koenma suddenly appeared out of thin air next to the desk.

"Whoa! How'd you do that?" Yusuke said to Dumbledore as Koenma flopped into the chair behind his desk.

"It's called Aparrating, my dear boy," Dumbledore replied with an amused smile, "It's something you learn at Hogwarts once you become of age." Yusuke's eyes shone with a new excitement and everyone present could imagine what mischievous thoughts were going through his head.

"I guess he won't mind posing as a student now," Kurama whispered to Kuwabara, who snickered. Dumbledore turned to Kurama.

"Now to answer your questioning thought, your spirit and or demon energy is the equivalent to wizard magic," he said to the three attentive teens and the fourth grumpy one. "That means you will be able to do some rudimentary magic, but not without the aid of a wand, which you will all have to purchase in Diagon Alley."

"With what, may I ask?" Kurama said dryly. "I believe you mentioned that wizards use a different currency than us."

"That's true," Koenma spoke up from his desk. "Which is why I am giving you access to MY funds." He reached into his pockets, muttering to himself. "Now where did I put it? I know it's here somewhere…aha!" Koenma triumphantly pulled out a tiny golden key. "This is the key to my vault at Gringotts, the wizard bank. Don't lose it."

"No problem, Koenma," Yusuke grinned, sticking out his hand. Koenma gave him a look that said, "You're kidding, right?" Then he handed the key to Kurama. "I'm trusting you with this, Kurama. There's a lot of mula in that vault."

"I won't let it out of my sight," Kurama said solemnly, putting the key in his pocket. "Oh come on, Koenma, you can trust me!" Yusuke whined. "In fact you can trust me more than him! He's got the infamous thief Youko in him, remember? The Demon Fox! The one who stole the Forlorn—" he was suddenly cut off by having his fist shoved into his mouth by Hiei.

"Detective?...Shut up."

"Thank you, Hiei," Koenma said curtly.

"I have a question," Kurama spoke up to Koenma, "why do YOU, the ruler of Spirit World, have a mortal bank account? And for that matter, how do you and Professor Dumbledore know each other?" Koenma and Dumbledore traded a glance, then Dumbledore said, "A story for another time, I think. There are other matters to attend at the moment."

"Like this," Koenma said, handing a folded up envelope to Kurama. The fox demon took it and carefully put it into his pocket. Koenma continued, "It will convince the Gringotts bankers that I really gave you the key to my vault. They are a suspicious bunch and if they see that people like you have my key they'll think you stole it.

"I'm also giving you this so that you can report back to me lest anything goes wrong. Electronics don't turn on at Hogwarts, but this has been specially charmed to work for you." He held out the pink compact mirror which was actually a disguised communicator. Everyone recognized it as the device Yusuke had used during the mission with the four Saint Beasts. Kurama quickly swiped it and put it next to Koenma's key before Yusuke could grab it with his slobber-covered hand.

"Now then, to your mode of transportation to the Leaky Cauldron," said Dumbledore. He rummaged inside his robes for a moment before pulling an object out and setting it on Koenma's desk.

Everyone stared at the deflated soccer ball that sat complacently on the wooden surface.

"This is a portkey," said Dumbledore to the four bemused looks. "It is a charmed object that will transport you to the Leaky Cauldron. Tom, the innkeeper, will explain any questions you have to the best of his abilities. But remember that he does not know that two of you are demons." He pulled out a small golden pocket watch and said, "My my, look at the time. The portkey will be leaving in about two minutes. Are you all ready?"

"Yep."

"Oh yeah!"

"Yes."

"Hn."

The four gripped their various bags and luggage and followed Dumbledore's instruction of putting one finger on the deflated soccer ball.

"Tom is expecting you," said Dumbledore, "so he's already prepared rooms in the Leaky Cauldron for you all, as term doesn't start for another three weeks. Buy your supplies, perhaps learn your way around, and be sure to catch the Hogwarts Express."

"You sound like my mother, Professor," Kurama joked, earning laughs from Yusuke and Kuwabara and a "Hn" from Hiei.

"Two more things," said Dumbledore, "Listen closely. First, you four may end up staying with Harry Potter before term starts, should the need arise. Second, if you have any questions, just send me an owl."

"Send you a what?" Yusuke said blankly.

"Goodbye and good luck," said Koenma, stepping away from the portkey.

"I'll see you four at Hogwarts, perhaps sooner," said Dumbledore with a cheery smile.

"Wait," said Yusuke loudly, "What about—"

The next moment, the world began to spin so fast that everything was a blur, and then it all disappeared.

* * *

"AAAAAAAHHHH!"

Yusuke and Kuwabara hit the floor as soon as the portkey released them. Kurama and Hiei landed on their feet but stumbled a little. The two demons looked around the large room they now stood in.

It was almost pitch dark, lit only by a few candles and lanterns. One wall was taken up by a large bar and spread before it was dozens of tables and benches, some with old glasses and plates. One look out the window showed that it was obviously night time.

"Ah, you've arrived! By your scream, young sir, I take it that this was your first time traveling by portkey, so I assume you four are the Japanese exchange students that Dumbledore sent?" Hiei and Kurama looked around to see a wizened, toothless old man shuffling toward them with a brightly burning lantern. "Welcome to the Leaky Cauldron, I'm Tom, the innkeeper." he grinned, holding out his hand to the nearest person who happened to be Kurama. Kurama looked at it in confusion for a second before remembering that handshakes were the customary greeting in this country. As he shook Tom's dry, wrinkled hand, he felt a pang of relief that he took English class in his school, and that he had studied English culture at home the night before.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Tom-san. I am Minamino, Shuichi." Tom blinked, and said, "Minamino? That's an unusual name… but it's nice to meet you too, Minamino." Kurama mentally slapped himself.

"I'm sorry," he apologized to Tom, "In Japan, we introduce ourselves by saying our last name first. I am Shuichi Minamino."

"Er," said Tom, now obviously confused. Kurama sighed and said, "These are my friends, Ura—I mean Yusuke Urameshi, Kazuma Kuwabara, and Hiei...er, Jaganshi."

"Hi," Yusuke moaned, finally getting off the floor and rubbing his head.

"Call me Kuwabara, okay? Not Kazuma," Kuwabara said to Tom, who grinned.

"No problem, lad. I'm sure your names will take some getting used to, but get used to them I will. Dumbledore told me all about you four, how you're heading off to Hogwarts for the year. You'll be picking up your supplies tomorrow, as most of the shops are closed right now." Kurama blinked and looked out a window. Despite the darkness, a few people were still roaming the streets and strangely, Kurama noticed that they never seemed to look at the Leaky Cauldron.

"Tom-san, are those people out there er…muggles?" Kurama asked the landlord.

"Aye," Tom said, "they be muggles. Can't see this pub at all." He suddenly frowned curiously at the four "transfer students".

"Here now, don't you know what muggles are?"

"We're new in this country," said Kurama quickly, "our terms in Japan differ from yours. Like, normal people are called 'Ningens', which means 'Humans'."

"I see," said Tom, scratching the stubble on his chin. "Well if you all have any questions about our culture, feel free to ask. In the meantime, please follow me. I'll show you to your rooms and some dinner." He shuffled off and the Tantei grabbed their bags and trailed after him.

"Dinner?" said Yusuke, "But we just had lunch like an hour ago."

"The time zones changed, Yusuke," Kurama informed him. "It's about nine o' clock PM right now."

"Well it works for me!" Kuwabara grinned. "We only have to stay awake for one more hours and then go back to bed!"

"For today at least," Kurama corrected, "we're getting up bright and early tomorrow morning."

"What? Why?" Yusuke shouted.

"To get our school supplies of course!" Kurama replied as Tom led them up a set of creaky wooded stairs. "The sooner we can get that out of the way the more time we will have to study English culture and explore Diagon Alley," he said eagerly.

"We have three weeks to do all of that, Kurama," Yusuke said, rolling his eyes.

"True, but I for one am quite eager to find out more about this Wizard world," said Kurama in an undertone that Tom didn't hear.

Hiei remained silent.

"Here we are," said Tom, stopping on a landing. A short hallway stretched before them with two doors on each side. "Take your pick of a room," Tom grinned, pushing the door to one of the four rooms open. The Tantei looked inside.

The room was surprisingly nice, with a handsome wooden dresser and mirror across from a large bed with crimson sheets and maroon hangings. A side table stood on the bed's right side. Yusuke let out a low whistle.

"Cool," he said. He opened the door of another room to reveal the same exact layout, except the sheets and hangings on the bed were green.

"This one is mine!" Yusuke shouted, jumping on the bed.

"Then I guess I'll take this one if nobody minds," said Kurama, walking in and claiming the red-colored room. Hiei and Kuwabara pushed the last two doors open, showing the same room as Yusuke and Kurama's with blue and dark purple-colored beds. Hiei immediately sat on the purple bed and Kuwabara dropped his bag on the blue one.

"Glad you took to your rooms so quickly," Tom grinned. "My customers like a bit of variety. Come down if you want some food or stay here and get settled in. Either way, I'll see you four tomorrow morning." And with that, he shuffled off.

"Finally," Hiei grunted, folding his arms, "I thought that old ningen would never leave us in peace."

"Hiei, don't be rude," Kurama frowned at the short demon, whose room was directly across from his own. "I noticed that you didn't say one word in Tom's presence, and I know that Tom became conscious of that as well."

"Hn." Hiei grunted as he, Yusuke, and Kuwabara all came into Kurama's room. Yusuke and Kuwabara sat on the bed next to Kurama, and Hiei settled against the wall.

"Well the first thing we'll have to do tomorrow is go to Gringotts Bank," said Kurama. "Then we'll get our wands and other school supplies."

"Wands! Cool!" Yusuke grinned, miming waving a wand in the air. "I can't wait to get one of those!"

"Er," Kuwabara suddenly said bashfully, "I think I forgot my supplies list back at home."

Yusuke blinked and said, "Hey, me too. Damn..."

"I believe that mine met an untimely demise with a flame," Hiei growled.

"Oops," Kurama said in amusement. "I guess I'm the only one who remembered his." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a neatly folded piece of parchment. "No matter. I'm pretty sure that our lists were all the same."

"Kurama, you're a lifesaver," Yusuke beamed.

For a while the four comrades went over Kurama's list and burned it into their memories. Then Kurama suggested they all get some rest so Yusuke and Kuwabara went back to their rooms for the night. But Hiei stayed in Kurama's room after they left, totally silent.

Kurama was unpacking his bag when he realized that Hiei hadn't left yet. He turned to the short demon and said, "Something bothering you?"

"I'm staying in this room," Hiei grunted, and swept over to the window and settled on the sill. Kurama blinked, his brain drawing up an uncomfortable blank.

"...Why?"

"Because my room doesn't have a window."

Kurama shook his head, though he felt a bubble of relief inside. Nothing serious after all. "Hiei, you're being silly."

"Hn. Deal with it," the short demon sniffed, and promptly lapsed into silence as he stared out into the dark night. With a sigh, Kurama lay on his bed in defeat. He looked up at his maroon canopy and thought, _at least this inn has good color taste_. His reflexions soon floated to this boy they were supposed to protect; Harry Potter. He wondered what he was like. Popular, probably, and very smug about his past accomplishments.

"Hiei," said Kurama softly. Hiei grunted to indicate that he was listening. "What do you think Harry will be like?"

Hiei snorted loudly. "Well, considering he's a ningen, probably very full of himself and cocky. And the fact that he's given so much attention AND he can do magic will most likely make him one of the most swollen-headed people in the world." He trailed off broodingly, leaving Kurama no more assured than before.

The demon fox sighed again. Suddenly he wasn't looking forward to this mission as much.

* * *

"Kazuma!" Yukina said happily, running through the meadow of sparkling flowers toward Kuwabara.

"Yukina, my love!" Kuwabara yelled blissfully, grabbing her soft, cool hands. Her large red eyes sparkled beautifully in the warm pink and yellow light that radiated around them.

"Yukina, there's something I want to tell you," said Kuwabara, feeling his face heat up.

"Yes, Kazuma?" said Yukina with that small gorgeous smile that made Kuwabara's heart reel.

"I—I--I just want to tell you—that—I—love you!" Kuwabara burst out, his face turning cherry red. Yukina blinked.

"What did you say?" she said in confusion.

"I—said that I love you! With all my heart!" replied Kuwabara.

"Good Lord, Kuwabara, get your head out of the clouds," Yukina snapped, kicking Kuwabara's shins.

"OW!" he yelled, hopping up and down. Then he took one hop too big and fell over and suddenly he was in a strange upside down room, and something was blindfolding and strangling him.

"Huh? Wha?" Kuwabara shouted, struggling against the choking object. "What's going on!? Where am I?!"

"Easy, lad, easy!" a familiar voice said nearby. Kuwabara felt the thing that was strangling him being pulled off of him and suddenly he was blinded by light.

He screwed his eyes up but still made out the blurry shape of…

"Tom?" Kuwabara said dazedly, the memory of last night slowly coming back.

"Yes, lad, it's me," said Tom with an amused grin, tossing the blanket that had been wrapped around Kuwabara onto the bed. "Sorry I kicked ya, but you just wouldn't wake up no matter how much I shouted." Kuwabara looked over at the cat-themed alarm clock on the side table that he'd brought with him from home. It read 8:35 a.m.

"It's only like 8:30!!" He yelled at Tom, jumping up. Tom blinked and said, "Sorry lad, but your friend, ah what's his name again…Shuichi, asked me to wake you and your friends up. He's downstairs right now waiting for you." And with that, Tom scurried out the door. Kuwabara pulled his clothes on over his boxers and white t-shirt, grumbling to himself. Then with a yawn, he strode out his door and headed downstairs to the common room.

Upon entering the common room, he stopped short.

The pub was filled with people, the oddest people he'd ever seen. For starters, almost all of them were wearing cloaks of some color, and they were all talking or eating or doing…magic. Kuwabara watched in amazement as a man flicked a short brown stick at a salt shaker, which immediately skidded across the table towards him. At another table was a woman holding a compact mirror and instructing an eyeliner pencil where and how to color her eyelids. Similar magical acts were going on all over the room.

Kuwabara finally spotted Yusuke and Kurama sitting at a table in a far dark corner. Kurama was reading a newspaper titled The Daily Prophet, and Yusuke was staring at the table with an expression similar to that of someone who had been deprived of sleep for a solid week. Kuwabara made his way over to them.

"Hey, Kuwabara," Yusuke yawned loudly. "So Kurama made you get out of bed at this ungodly hour too?" Kuwabara nodded and glared at Kurama.

"Why'd you get us up early?" He snapped to his red-headed friend. Kurama looked up from his newspaper with a blink.

"Because we have to go get our school supplies of course," the demon fox replied.

"But why so EARLY?" Yusuke whined.

"Oh stop complaining," said Kurama, returning to his newspaper. "You get up even earlier than this to go to school every day."

"I hardly ever go to school!" Yusuke snapped, "And I'm never on time in the morning anyway! I always sleep in until almost noon!"

"Well then you're just going to have to get used to it," said Kurama distractedly. "After all, we'll be living in Hogwarts and you're not going to be able to skip or be late there."

"Man, this mission gets worse and worse," Yusuke grumbled, leaning back in his seat and balancing on the two back legs. Kurama shook his head.

Yusuke and Kuwabara's attention turned for a second when they saw three plates of food heaped with eggs, bacon, and toast flying toward them. They watched in amazement as the plates settled on their table. Three cups of tea followed shortly after.

"Cool," Yusuke said, and immediately dug in. After a suspicious look, Kuwabara did the same. Kurama ignored his food—his newspaper, the Daily Prophet, was fascinating him. All of the pictures moved, and writing that advertised stores and shops would wiggle across the page. And when the page was turned, the advertisements would quickly slide onto the article you were reading and block your view.

Finally Kurama got tired of reading the same persistent advertisement for enchanted griffin feathers and got started on his food, which was surprisingly difficult to eat with Yusuke and Kuwabara across from him literally snorting their food down. Chewing on a muffin, Kurama examined the people around him. True, they didn't vary as much as a typical pub in the demon world, but they were still very curious to observe. As he sipped at his cup of tea, Kurama found himself listening to snippets of the conversations around him:

"Oh dear, I'll also have to get new robes in Diagon Alley, these ones are at least four inches too short…"

"Hey chap, do you see those three youngens over there in the corner? Look like muggles don't they?"

"Wow, that redhead is really cute. I've never seen a boy's hair so long. He is a boy, right?"

"Good Lord, those two are eating like starved dogs! Where do they come from, I wonder…" At this statement, Kurama turned to his friends, who were still inhaling their food.

"Please you two, you're setting a terrible example!" said Kurama in disgust. "Plus you're attracting a lot of stares." And it was true. Over half the customers in the pub were staring at them avidly.

"But I thought you wanted us to go to Diagon Alley A.S.A.P," Yusuke managed to grin through a mouthful of English muffin.

"Well not so fast that you choke," Kurama frowned. Yusuke and Kuwabara grunted something that sounded like 'Hypocrite' and ate their food more slowly and politely. Kurama let out a sigh of relief as the conversations around him stopped bringing up his friends' eating habits. He already had that downed reputation in Japan. By God, he wasn't going to have it in Britain as well.

"So, where's the shrimp?" Kuwabara said, pausing in the act of eating his eggs.

"Yeah," Yusuke said with a blink, "Come to think of it, I haven't seen Hiei all morning."

"I believe he went out to explore the muggle side of the pub. He said he wanted to 'see if the humans here were worse than the ones in Japan'." Kurama smiled a little. "But honestly I think he's curious and just wants to explore this city. He vaguely predicted he'd be back around nine this morning." Yusuke and Kuwabara simultaneously looked at the clock that hung over the bar. It read 8:47.

"So he should be here soon," said Yusuke, returning to his bacon.

"Yes," replied Kurama, finally eating his own food, which had gotten a little cold by now. "I figured that around the time we finished breakfast, Hiei would show up."

Ten minutes later the three had just barely finished their food and watched the plates fly themselves away when the door creaked open. Some of the pub fell quiet as a short, black clad figure swept inside and irritably made his way to the table in the far corner. Kurama blinked as a shadow fell over him. He looked up from the Prophet and stared at Hiei.

"You're early. That's unusual for you," said Kurama simply.

"Quite an entrance you made too," Yusuke added. The Tantei looked at the people around them. Everyone was staring at them now and whispering for some odd reason. Kurama tuned his ears to catch the various conversations.

"Wow, did you see that guy who just walked in? He has this attitude like…no one can touch him," A young teenage girl said to her friend.

"At first, I had this feeling that a rabid panther had just strode in. That guy gives me willies," An old man whispered to his comrade.

"That creepy guy, he's with those weirdos? That figures," A woman muttered. Kurama had had just about enough at this point, and he saw that Hiei's face was turning dark as a thundercloud. But before he could take any action, Yusuke stood up angrily.

"Alright!" Yusuke said loudly. "If anyone has an issue with me or my friends, they can step up and feel free to speak their mind."

The pub fell silent.

"However we won't be responsible for whatever happens to those people afterwards," Hiei put in softly. But everyone nearby heard him with perfect clarity, as well as the menace in his voice, and shuddered. There was a long, still, hushed minute. Then Kurama stood up.

"Shall we go?" he said curtly to his friends.

"I'm game," said Kuwabara, standing up as well. The four of them strode for the door. People scooted their chairs back to make a path for them and kept their eyes down. Many people shivered as Hiei passed by with his downright evil aura. Finally they made it out the door into a small trashy yard and closed it behind them, locking out all of the emotions and stares. Kuwabara let out a long breath.

"That was cool," he grinned. "I felt like the sheriff in an old western movie when he walks into a bar." Yusuke examined the brick wall that was pressing them in.

"But of all the places we had to go, we had to go in a dingy little yard," he growled.

"'Dingy'," Hiei repeated with a smirk, "Well well, Yusuke, is your vocabulary actually growing?"

"Shut up, Hiei." Yusuke said snippily.

"There's more to this wall than meets the eye," said Kurama, holding up a finger. He gathered some of his spirit energy in its tip and tapped several of the bricks.

"Kurama, what are you doing?" said Yusuke with a frown. The fox demon smiled as he tapped one last brick.

"Taking us to Diagon Alley of course." There was a sudden grating noise and the Tantei stepped back as the bricks all started to tremble and move around until they formed an arched gateway into a world that was nothing short of astounding to the four.

There was activity everywhere, and all of it was activity they had never seen before in their lives. Shops lined the street in front of them, each holding something different and exotic and wonderful in their display windows. People were bustling about, calling to each other, talking to the store owners, and examining merchandise. It was almost dizzying to watch.

"So this is Diagon Alley," said Yusuke softly.

"Yup," said Kuwabara, and nothing more could be said. Thus the Tantei strode into the mass of people and activity, wondering if they really were ready to take on this whole new world.

* * *

Dokkou: Okay sorry if there wasn't enough action in this chapter but don't worry. The talking is over. From now on, the adventure begins! Hahaha, you guys are gonna love the next few chapters. P.S. there are going to be a lot of...how should I say...Hiei centered occurences. He is after all my favorite anime character of _all time_, so you can be sure that a lot of stuff in going to happen with him, both good and bad. (evil laugh) ahem...

I am debating with myself if I should put in an OC or not. What would you think if I put in an OC but she didn't have a relationship with anyone other than friendship? Or maybe just some minor fluff? Even that probably wouldn't be very...fluffy...I suck at writing romance.

Please give me your opinion.

Coming Soon-- Chapter 3: Gringotts and Ollivanders

Summary- Hiei and Kurama have a run-in with the Gringotts goblins, and the tentei find their new wands. What chaos will ensue?


	3. Gringotts and Ollivanders

_Previously..._

"_There's more to this wall than meets the eye," said Kurama, starting to tap several of the bricks._

"_Kurama, what are you doing?" said Yusuke with a frown. Kurama smiled as he tapped on last brick._

"_Taking us to Diagon Alley of course." There was a sudden grating noise and the Tentei stepped back as the bricks all started to tremble and move around until they formed an arched gateway into a world that was nothing short of astounding to the four._

_There was activity everywhere, and all of it was activity they'd never seen in their lives. Shops lined the street in front of them, each holding something different and wonderful in their display windows. People were bustling about, calling to other people, talking to the store owners, and examining merchandise. It was almost dizzying to watch._

"_So this is Diagon Alley," said Yusuke softly._

"_Yup," said Kuwabara, and nothing more could be said. So the Tentei strode into the mass of people and activity, wondering if they really were ready to take on this whole new world.

* * *

_

Dokkou: Chapter 3. I like this one. Hope you all do too. Thanks again everyone for reading and reviewing. Ooooh, I've got tons of surprises in store. Mwahahahaa...

* * *

Gringotts and Ollivanders

"Okay, the first thing we need to do is head to Gringotts and acquire some gold," said Kurama, looking down at his list of school supplies and a To Do list. "According to Tom, Gringotts should be farther down the street." The four headed off. After about ten minutes of walking and intense staring, they found themselves standing before an enormous marble building with the words 'Gringotts Wizard Bank' across the top in gold lettering.

"Think this is the place?" Kuwabara joked. Hiei 'Hn'ed and swept up the stairs. The others followed him quickly. So quickly in fact that when Hiei stopped very suddenly, Kurama bumped into him, Yusuke bumped into Kurama, and Kuwabara bumped into Yusuke.

"What's the hold up?" said Yusuke irritably.

"Are those demons?" Hiei said. The others immediately got into battle stance and faced the huge double doors of Gringotts, which were flanked by two short and extremely ugly…things. One was wearing a silver uniform, the other was wearing a gold uniform. After seeing them, Kurama relaxed.

"No worries, everyone." he told the others. "Those are just the goblins that run Gringotts."

"Goblins?" said Kuwabara in amazement. "Real ones? Cool!" Hiei relaxed, but only slightly. Kurama gave him a nudge in the back to make him move forward. Hiei stiffly walked toward the doors and the two goblins narrowed their eyes at him. When he got to the doors, the goblins blocked the way.

"You two may not enter," the silver-clad one said, pointing at Hiei and Kurama.

"You both smell of trickery and craftiness," the gold-clad one snapped.

"You will not set foot in this bank," they said together. The Tantei looked at each other. Then Kurama stepped forward.

"I think you smell our past crimes," Kurama said patiently to them. "But we're reformed now. We wouldn't dream of stealing anything from your bank."

"Once a criminal, always a criminal," Silver sneered.

"Reformation cannot change that," added Gold. Hiei growled low in his throat like a wild animal. In the blink of an eye, he was holding the front of Silver's uniform shirt. Gold quickly reached into his pocket and held it there. Kurama glanced around them and noticed that they were receiving stares from passerby.

"We aren't going to steal anything from this pathetic excuse for a bank," Hiei snarled, "it would be pitifully easy, not even worth our time." Silver bared his sharp little teeth angrily.

"Release me or face terrible consequences!" he snarled. Hiei's lip curled derisively, but Kurama heard the true menace in Silver's voice and knew he wasn't kidding. He quickly stepped forward and pushed Hiei's hand off of Silver, who dropped to the ground.

"Enough, Hiei," said Kurama sharply. "You're only proving them right by acting this way." Hiei glared at him and Kurama grimly stared right back. Yusuke, Kuwabara, and the two goblins watched this exchange in amazement. Then Hiei smirked and folded his arms.

"Fine Kurama, you win this time. They will go unpunished." Hiei suddenly leaned forward and whispered in a voice that only Kurama heard, "But Yoko wouldn't have just let such insolence go free." Kurama's face hardened.

"Well I'm not Yoko," he said coldly, and strode past him to Silver. Hiei was still smirking.

"I'm sorry about that," said Kurama, helping Silver to his feet. "My friend in extremely prideful and touchy, it's not really his fault." These words were said loud enough for a certain fire demon to hear, and growl at. Kurama looked at Gold, whose hand was still in his pocket. They were still in the danger zone. "My friend and I will stay out here if you wish, but may Yusuke and Kuwabara enter?" he said with as much politeness as possible. The goblins looked at the two humans with disgust. Yusuke and Kuwabara returned the looks with sneers.

"Yes, they may enter," Silver said disdainfully. "True, there is trickery on them as well, but there is no way they could steal anything from our vaults."

"Then Hiei and I will wait out here and not cause any more trouble," Kurama sighed. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Gold slowly take his hand out of his pocket. Kurama sighed in relief.

"Okay Kurama, only the two of us can go in, so hand over Koenma's little key," Yusuke grinned, holding out his hand to the demon fox. Kurama gave him the same derisive look that Koenma had given, and took out the key and handed it to Kuwabara.

"I feel I can trust you more, as you do have a code of honor," said Kurama, ignoring Yusuke's angry rants of nobody trusting him. Kuwabara looked at the key in wonder, then at Kurama.

"Thanks, I'll keep it safe," he promised, clutching it tightly. He turned to the doors with Yusuke next to him. The goblins glanced at each other and then each pulled one of the double doors open. The Tantei stared inside in amazement.

A long hall stretched before them, teeming with wizards and goblins alike. The place was filled with gold and various valuables that, despite his word, made Kurama let out a small moan of longing. Hiei looked at the treasures before him with an unreadable expression, then pushed Yusuke and Kuwabara inside, as they had been standing stalk still staring at the interior in wonder.

"Get moving, we don't have all day," Hiei snarled.

"Uh, right," Yusuke said dazedly, "Let's go Kuwabara." The two of them walked inside and were instantly met by another goblin.

"Good morning, my name is Griphook. Can I help you?" the goblin said carefully, casting glances at Silver and Gold outside, who gave him curt nods.

"Yeah, we need to get to this vault," said Kuwabara, handing Koenma's key to Griphook. The goblin twirled the key in his hand and his eyes widened. Kurama and Hiei looked at each other restlessly.

"Lord Koenma's key," Griphook hissed, glaring up at them, "How did you get this?"

"He gave it to us," said Kuwabara uneasily. The goblin bared his teeth.

"Liar," he snapped. Then he raised his voice. "Security! Security! Thieves!"

"Wait a second!" Kurama cried from outside, "We can explain! Here…" he reached into his pocket and pulled out Koenma's envelope. "This can clarify everything." Gold snatched the envelope, tore it open and read it with narrowed eyes. The Tantei and the other two goblins as well as a few curious passerby waited for the verdict. Gold finally glanced up and let out a disappointed hiss. Kurama looked at him calmly with just a hint of smugness.

"Let them through," the goblin grunted to Griphook. "They are speaking the truth." The Tantei let out a relieved sigh.

"We apologize," said Griphook, "It's just that Lord Koenma's key has not been seen in this bank for over two hundred years, and seeing you in possession of it was rather suspicious."

"That's okay, we can understand that," said Kuwabara grudgingly before Yusuke could snarl an insult at the goblin and make their already frail situation even more delicate.

Griphook bowed and said, "If you'll follow me, I'll take you to the vault immediately." And with that, he led Yusuke and Kuwabara away into the crowd. Hiei and Kurama stared after them and Silver and Gold each took his respective positions by the doors again, sometimes glancing at the two demons suspiciously.

"That was close," Kurama breathed.

"That was an annoying waste of time," Hiei growled, leaning against the marble wall.

"Still, at least we didn't cause an upheaval. The last thing we want to do right now is draw unwanted attention to ourselves," said Kurama sagely. Hiei grunted.

About half an hour later, Yusuke and Kuwabara emerged with expressions of wonder. Kuwabara handed Kurama a heavy bag of silver, gold, and bronze coins and repeated the method of purchasing that Griphook had told him.

"That sounds simple enough," said Kurama, stuffing the bag into his pocket. "There's only three kinds of coins. Easy to remember." And without further ado the four went off to buy their supplies, with Silver and Gold casting them glares until they disappeared into the writhing crowd of Diagon Alley.

* * *

"Well that went smoother than I was expecting," said Kurama, sitting down in a seat beneath the giant orange and white umbrella that shaded the table of Florean Fortescue's ice cream parlor. Yusuke and Kuwabara dropped their bags of books and various other supplies with a sigh of relief, and then collapsed into their chairs. Hiei set his bags down as well, but didn't take a seat. He stood just behind Kurama's shoulder looking totally unfazed by everything that had happened so far. And what had happened so far was that the four had purchased their books, cauldrons, robes, and the rest of their small objects. The only things left to purchase, in fact, were wands and pets. But they'd all agreed, including Hiei, to break for lunch.

Yusuke and Kuwabara ordered two large ice-scream sundaes and scarfed them down as soon as they arrived, the warning Kurama had given them about politeness that morning forgotten. Kurama had ordered a small vanilla cone and Hiei had gotten a very large milkshake. He sucked at it contentedly as he leaned against the wall of the shop in a patch of shade. Kurama didn't even bother to make conversation with his companions. The only reply he would get from Yusuke and Kuwabara was a face full of half-melted ice cream, and as for Hiei, he might as well make small talk with a boulder. In fact a boulder was more likely to respond than the short demon himself.

But Kurama was content with sitting silently to think and plan the rest of the day which, instinctively and unconsciously, expanded into planning the whole rest of the year.

After lunch, the four followed Florean Fortescue's directions to the shop where they would purchase wands.

The four stood before Ollivanders, Maker of Fine Wands, all somewhat hesitant to go inside. The shop didn't look very inviting; it looked dark and dusty, like a very old library.

Yusuke took a deep breath and said, "Well, let's just go in and get this over with." And then he pushed the door open and strode into the shop. Hiei, Kuwabara, and Kurama glanced at each other then followed Yusuke.

They looked around the shop with some interest. It did greatly resemble a library, with high shelves filled with long, narrow boxes and an air of muffled quiet and mystery.

"Good afternoon," a wheezy voice said behind Kuwabara, who jumped and let out a yell. Hiei snorted derisively.

The stooped old man before them chuckled as he hobbled to the front counter and stood behind it, staring at the four with a very unnerving pair of blue eyes.

"Sorry about that, Sonny," he said to Kuwabara, "didn't mean to startle you, though it is an unfortunate habit of mine. Now, how can I help you?"

"We're here to purchase wands, as you could probably surmise," Kurama smiled at him. "I assume that you are Ollivander?"

"Yes indeed I am," the old man chuckled, "You're a sharp one. But here now, you don't look like you're from around here," he said, his voice turning serious.

"You're right," said Kurama, "We're transfer students from Japan and we're going to Hogwarts this year."

"Ah, I see," said Ollivander, but he didn't take his serious eyes off of Kurama's face. Kurama met the gaze evenly.

"I've never heard of demons going to Hogwarts as students," said Ollivander softly. The Tantei stiffened. Suddenly Ollivander was pressed to the wall with a sword pushed to his throat.

"You have a problem with that?" Hiei said with quiet menace, tightening his grip on the old man. Ollivander's face showed just the smallest trace of unease as he turned his pale eyes to Hiei's red ones.

"Of course not, unless you intend to threaten the students the way you are threatening me," he said with controlled softness.

"Put him down, Hiei," said Kurama in exasperation, "you're acting very suspicious and rude." Hiei glared at the red head and released Ollivander with an annoyed snarl. By the time Ollivander's feet touched the ground, Hiei was leaning up against the far wall, glaring at an empty box, his eyes smoldering.

"Your friend is very high-strung," said Ollivander, rubbing his throat.

"I'm terribly sorry, he's not used to this much contact with hum—people. He's very unsocial," said Kurama apologetically. Ollivander gave the red head a small smile.

"That's alright, but I do hope he won't take anyone's head off just because he's not in a good mood."

Kurama fidgeted, unable to truthfully set his fears at ease. Ollivander sighed and said, "Shall we find your wands?"

"Yes, thank you," Kurama murmured. Ollivander glanced at Hiei and then said to Kurama, "Let's start with you." He pulled out a measuring tape, which jumped from his hand and started measuring Kurama in all kinds of places. Ollivander shuffled off and pulled a box off a shelf as the tape measured around Kurama's head.

"Hm, let's try this one. Holly branch and unicorn hair, seventeen inches, good for charm work." Ollivander handed Kurama a light brown colored wand. Kurama stared at it doubtfully as it sat unmoving in his hand.

"Give it a wave," said Ollivander. Kurama twirled the wand gracefully, and a bouquet of white roses burst out of the tip and showered onto Yusuke, Kuwabara, and Ollivander.

"Ow! Thorns! Ow! Thorns!" Kuwabara yelled, trying to pull a rose out of his orange hair. But Ollivander was grinning.

"Excellent! I've never seen a wand take to a person so quickly! You found your wand on your first try!" He said in delight. Kurama grinned and looked down at his wand. Then he looked up at Hiei, who was snickering at Kuwabara's thorny situation. With a playful smile, Kurama aimed the wand at Hiei and a cloud of red roses fell all over him and stuck to various parts of his black cloak. Hiei's lip curled as Yusuke and Kuwabara burst out laughing, and Kurama and Ollivander chuckled.

"Think that's funny, do you?" he snarled, trying to jerk a rose off and only succeeding in creating a large run in the fabric. Kuwabara and Yusuke only laughed harder, which nearly pushed Hiei over the edge. A roar of flames engulfed the short demon, immediately crisping all the roses and swiftly ending the laughter. Black petals drifted to the floor and disintegrated on impact. Hiei blew a half-intact rose petal off his shoulder and leaned back against the wall, glaring at the four of them. Kurama's smile was long gone, and Ollivander was staring at Hiei in amazement. He quietly boxed Kurama's wand and bleakly started to measure Yusuke.

Yusuke and Kuwabara's wands were a little trickier to find. Yusuke tried seven different wands before finally finding the right one, which was a thirteen-inch-long birch-and-griffin hair wand. When he touched it, it emitted a shower of green sparks, which Yusuke was careful to keep away from Hiei.

Kuwabara only had to try four wands before he settled with a fifteen-inch cedar-and-dragon scale wand, which let out a cloud of lily-smelling blue smoke.

And finally it was Hiei's turn. The measuring tape hesitantly started to measure Hiei, who was strangely tolerant of the tiny thing. Ollivander handed him a long light brown wand. Hiei flicked it and the measuring tape suddenly let out a screech as it started to be eaten away by a purple substance. Ollivander hurriedly pulled out his own wand and Vanished the substance. The tape squealed and wrapped fearfully around his wrist, twitching its burnt end.

"Wrong," Ollivander muttered, grabbing the wand out of Hiei's hand and giving him another one. Another wave brought an entire shelf of wands crashing to the floor. Kurama flinched a little, but Ollivander said, "Not to worry, not to worry," and flicked his own wand again, causing the shelf and the boxes to right and re-order themselves.

Six more wands were tried with the same general result of destruction. By the time Ollivander handed Hiei a long black wand, the shop was in shambles.

"Phoenix feather and dragon claw, fourteen inches, very sturdy, good for hexes and jinxes," said Ollivander, eying the wand. "That wand has been in my shop for the past eighteen years; no one could handle it. But I think it will work for you. Try it out." Hiei stared at the wand. It didn't even look like it was made of wood, more like lead or obelisk. He took a breath and brought it down in a slashing motion.

A blast of green fire burst from the wand tip. Ollivander, Yusuke, Kurama, and Kuwabara ducked out of the way, and the fire blew into the shelves or wands, but didn't burn anything. The flames then turned into a cloud of purple and green sparkles, which showered down on the five and made them glimmer quite beautifully. All the shelves were glowing with sparkles.

Ollivander glanced at Hiei. He was still holding the wand out, and there was an expression of rapt peace on his face. His red eyes seemed very distant, staring at something that no one else could see. Kurama hesitantly approached the demon and touched his shoulder.

"Hiei? Are you alright?" said Kurama. Hiei blinked dazedly.

"What?" he said, lowering the wand.

"I believe you have found your wand," said Ollivander with a small smile. Hiei blinked again.

"How did you feel?" Yusuke said to him curiously.

"Oh... it was nothing.... I just got a very cold feeling..." Hiei felt a gaze on his face and looked up to meet Ollivander's pale, wide eyes.

"Curious," the old man said as he took the wand and boxed it up. "Very curious." Hiei pursed his lips but said nothing.

The wands were paid for, and the four left the store quite happily. Ollivander stared out his window at the four until they disappeared into the crowd.

"Curious," he murmured to himself, "I have a feeling that great things are in store for those four." And then his reverie was interrupted by a couple of young wizards entering his store, and he turned to assist his new customers.

* * *

Dokkou: Okay I know it was a short chapter, but it was a good one, ne? Please leave a review before you wander blissfully to another page, because I lurve getting reviews and opinions from people. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy...

Next Chapter: _New Pets; The Lingokeyen and the Emopygmy Owl_

Summary: The four are headed to the pet shop. Then again, Yusuke's got Puu and Kuwabara's got his kitten Eiketchi, so that just leaves Kurama and Hiei. But can any pets even survive the wrathful fire demon and murderous fox spirit? Find out in the next exciting installment of Welcome to Hogwarts.


	4. The Lingokeyen and the Emopygmy Owl

* * *

_Previously..._

_The wands were paid for, and the tantei left the store quite happily. Ollivander stared out his window at the four until they disappeared into the crowd._

_"Curious," he murmured to himself, "I have a feeling that great things are __in store for those young lads." Then his reverie was interrupted by a couple of young wizards entering his store, and he turned to assist his new customers._

* * *

Dokkou: Okaaaay, here comes chapter four. GLORRRRRRRIOUS chapter four. (badly played trumpets in background) ahem...okay okay my lovely reviewers. By popular demand I very much doubt that I shall insert an OC character. And you know what, you guys have a very valid point. Almost every YYH fanfic I've read has had an OC in it and most of the time, I honestly didn't like it. Of course there have been exceptions, but on the whole I didn't like them because then the whole story was all about the OC and they always fell in love with either Kurama or Hiei and yadda yadda yadda mushy fluff and floor paste. Hm...I'm just going to have to cast around for the character that most fits my needs...(shifty eyes)

Anyway, THANK YOU, reviewers and readers alike. I enjoyed your reviews and opinions (but mostly your praise) very much. I really do appreciate the time you take out of your busy, busy, important lives to read my random and very pushy thoughts... Now read!!

* * *

New Pets; the Lingokeyen and the Emopygmy Owl

"Well that was annoying," Hiei growled.

"Come on, it wasn't that bad," said Kurama fairly. "In fact, I have a feeling that you had fun causing all that destruction."

Hiei smirked and said, "Fine, I admit it, I was enjoying myself."

"Okay, now what's left to do?" Yusuke asked from two steps behind Hiei and Kurama.

"The last thing we need to do is purchase pets." Kurama responded as they rounded a corner and passed a small crowd of people.

"Pets? No thanks, none for me," Yusuke drawled as they strode down the street. "I already got Puu and he's a handful enough."

"You barely even take care of him!" said Kuwabara with a frown. "Puu's with Keiko and Genkai more than you!" Yusuke shrugged and said, "Well what about you? Are you going to get a pet even though you have that little kitten?" Kuwabara blinked.

"Eiketchi! I almost forgot…well, she's company enough. I don't need another pet."

Yusuke looked over at Hiei and Kurama. "What about you guys? You don't have any pets, so what do you want to get?"

"I'm not getting any pet," Hiei snorted. "They're way too much trouble. Not worth it at all."

"Well I intend to get something," said Kurama thoughtfully as they came toward a shop labeled Pet Emporium. "I've been thinking of an owl since that white one delivered my letter. It was beautiful," he sighed. Hiei rolled his eyes.

The four entered the store and were buffeted by both the racket of the animals and the smell. But the animals were far too intriguing to go back outside. The tentei split up and explored the store.

Kurama immediately headed to a section for birds and strolled past the owls, some of which were in cages, some of which were free to fly around as they wished. Most of them didn't seem to want to get near him for some reason. Kurama held out his hand to a large barn owl, which emitted a large screech and fluttered away to the back of the store. Kurama blinked and wondered for a second before realization came to him.

They feared him because he was a demon, and a fox demon to make it worse. Kurama's spirit fell. Apparently he wasn't going to get an owl-- he couldn't bear to make it live in fear with him. He dejectedly turned his back on the birds and headed for the front of the store, wondering if perhaps a different pet could stand him. Suddenly he felt something catch on his shirt. He blinked and glanced down.

A tiny navy-blue-and-brown owl the size of a fist had attached itself to Kurama's shirt. It stared up at him with large yellow eyes and gave out a melancholy hoot.

"Hello there." said Kurama softly, slowly prying the owl off of his shirt and holding it in his hands. It was very cute. "Are you implying that you want to come with me?" the owl hooted again and nibbled on Kurama's thumb. A smile spread over Kurama's face and he laughed. Then he watched in amazement as the owl's feathers turned from brown and blue to a bright yellow. "How did you do that?" Kurama murmured, stroking the owl's tiny head with his index finger. The owl hooted again and turned a pale orange with swirls of light yellow. Then it fluttered off and settled on the cashier's counter and looked expectantly at Kurama. He smiled again and headed to the counter.

"Are you planning to buy this owl?" the lady at the counter said, looking at the tiny owl.

"Perhaps, after getting some information about it," said Kurama, striding up to the counter. "Like, why does it change color?" the woman picked up the owl in her hands.

"This is an emopygmy owl," she said, "It's a rare kind of owl that changes the color of its feathers according to the mood of the person around it. For example, yellow is happy, blue is gloomy, red is angry, green is peaceful, white is scared, orange is surprised, grey is sad…well, you get the idea. The owl comes with a sheet of paper that lists all the colors the owl changes and what moods are associated with what color." With each word she spoke, Kurama's intrigue grew. By the time she finished speaking, he was determined to purchase the owl.

"How much?" he asked her.

"Fifty galleons." Kurama flinched and hesitantly looked inside the money bag. He let out a huge sigh of relief upon seeing that he had more than enough gold for the owl. As he passed the woman the gold coins, his new owl hooted in delight and settled on Kurama's shoulder. Kurama then went off to find his wayward friends.

* * *

Yusuke and Kuwabara were staring at a tank of fish when Kurama found them. The fish would suddenly puff up and completely change their shapes from small and slender to large, spiky and round. Kurama briefly showed them his new owl then led them away to find Hiei.

Apparently, Hiei was even less popular than Kurama in the store. Every animal he got close to would either screech and squeal when he came near, or hiss threateningly at him. All the birds had fled to the rafters at the opposite end of the store, and all the assorted other creatures had scampered as far away from him as possible in their cages. Hiei glared at the legion of animals facing him fearfully and snorted.

"And people wonder why I don't like animals," he snarled, and then swept off toward the door to get outside. But as he was passing a cage, he noticed something that made him stop.

Inside of the cage was a very tiny cat, maybe a little bigger than an adult's outstretched hand. It was a light, sandy-brown color, and it had two very long, slender tails that were tipped with purple. It had the slender build of a Siamese cat. Its glowing green eyes were fixed on Hiei, and it didn't draw away from him as he came near. It sat primly in the middle of its cage, its two tails twitching, staring at him completely unafraid. Hiei stared back, then walked up to the cage. The cat didn't move. Hiei slowly put his hand to the wire bars and put his finger inside. The cat stared at it for a long moment. Then it stood up and rubbed its head against Hiei's finger. Hiei stroked its amazingly soft fur and the cat purred.

"Why aren't _you_ afraid of me?" Hiei said to it. The cat stared at him for a long moment. Then it bit down hard on its own paw causing a drop of blood to appear. Hiei blinked and watched the cat lick his finger. Then it suddenly chomped down on it, and at the same moment, flicked its bloody paw at his face. Hiei didn't pull away in time to prevent a drop of the cat's blood from entering his mouth and landing right on his tongue. It tasted like iron.

Hiei hissed and jerked his bleeding finger back. The cat licked his blood from its lips, with a strangely triumphant gleam in its emerald eyes.

"Stupid cat," Hiei growled, turning away.

"Row!" The cat said, pressing itself to the bars of the cage. "Mrrow! Mrrrrow! Wwwwaaait!" Hiei froze and slowly looked back at the cat. "W…wait!" the cat said. Hiei stared at it. Then he slowly knelt by its cage.

"Did you just talk?" he murmured.

"Mew, mrow, yeow….yes," the cat said. It seemed to struggle with the speech, but it was speech nonetheless.

"Mrrout," it said.

Hiei blinked. "What?"

"Out," the cat said, rubbing against the bars. "Out."

"You want out of the cage," said Hiei slowly.

"Y…yes." Hiei looked at it for a long moment.

"Fine, whatever," he growled. He lifted the bar that locked the cat in and the metal door swung open. The cat quickly leaped out and streaked across the floor and out of sight. Hiei snorted as he watched it go.

"Hiei! There you are!" a familiar voice rang out. Hiei looked around and saw Kurama, Yusuke, and Kuwabara heading toward him. There was a tiny yellow owl swaying on Kurama's shoulder.

"We've been looking all over for you," said Kurama, coming up to the fire demon. "We were starting to wonder if you had left." He glanced at the open, empty cage curiously. Hiei didn't wait for him to ask about it.

"What is that thing on your shoulder?" Hiei grunted, staring at the owl. Kurama smiled and stroked the owl with a finger.

"This is my new emopygmy owl," said Kurama fondly.

"Emo…pygmy…" Hiei repeated slowly as Yusuke headed toward the shop door. Hiei, Kuwabara and Kurama followed him.

"It's an owl that changes color in response to emotion," Kurama explained, still petting the tiny bird. "I've heard that these owls are very rare. Found only on an island very far away. I'm surprised they're not more popular because they're really quite charming, and this is as big as they get so they're portable in a matter of speaking—"

"That's nice, Kurama," Hiei cut through the fox demon's uncommon rant as they neared the door. Yusuke out his hand on the door handle and pushed it open.

At that moment, a brown streak zoomed for the opening so fast that its features were blurred.

"What the—" Yusuke said in surprise.

The brown flash was right at the door frame when it happened.

A blue light went up in the doorway and the brown form slammed into it at full speed and bounced back against a stack of empty cages. The cages wobbled, and then started to fall over. Yusuke and Kuwabara dove forward and caught most of the cages before they hit the ground, but two escaped their grasp and crashed thunderously to the floor. Customers and animals alike let out noises of alarm and looked around for the source of the disturbance. Kurama's owl emitted a screech and hid itself in the fox demon's long red hair, turning a swirling orange and white color.

"Geez, what the heck was that?" Kuwabara said loudly as he and Yusuke gently set the cages on the floor.

"I think THAT'S what caused this accident," said Kurama, pointing at a small figure huddled in the middle of the floor. Everyone turned to look at it and Hiei let out a small growl.

The brown two-tailed cat was staring around itself in confusion. Then its eyes locked on the doorway—which was no longer blue—and tentatively stalked toward it. Just before its short snout went out the door, the blue shield came up and bumped the tiny pink nose. The cat drew back, looking mortified. It looked around at Hiei with pleading green eyes.

"Forget it," Hiei said with a frown. "I let you out of that cage, now you can get _yourself_ out of this place."

"You let it out of its cage?" Yusuke said to Hiei in surprise. The fire demon shrugged.

"Yes," he said simply. The woman from the counter suddenly bustled up to the four of them.

"Goodness, what happened?" she panted. She caught sight of the cat. "She escaped again," the woman sighed. "This is the fifth time this month. If this goes on, we're going to have to euthanize her."

"What? Just because she escaped?" Kuwabara said in horror.

"Well, no, also because she scratches and bites people very often," said the woman. "She actually bit me the last time she escaped." She held up her index finger to show a tiny pair of half-healed teeth marks. The cat suddenly let out a hiss.

"Serve you right," it growled. Hiei stared at it in amazement and looked around at the others. But, strangely, their expressions weren't surprised; in fact, they didn't look any different.

"Did you hear that?" he said to them slowly.

"Hear what?" said Kuwabara.

Hiei pointed at the cat. "It just talked." Everyone stared at him.

"It didn't talk, it hissed," said Yusuke. Kurama, Kuwabara and the woman nodded.

"It talked," Hiei insisted, "It just said, 'Serve you right'." The four of them stared at him, then at the cat, then back at him.

"Wow, they slow," the cat said smugly.

"There it goes again," said Hiei, "didn't you hear it?" the others shook their heads, looking perplexed.

"I just heard it meow," said Kuwabara.

Hiei frowned as the cat came up and rubbed against his leg.

"What kind of cat is this?" he said to the woman.

"I believe she's called a lingokeyen. It's a very rare and mysterious kind of cat that is rumored to have strange powers, including the power to speak, but only certain people can hear it." The woman's eyes widened. "Maybe you're one of those special people," she breathed in amazement. Hiei stared at the lingokeyen. It purred and jumped up and wound around his neck. Hiei felt its soft warm fur rub against his neck and he felt a shiver of sudden unexplained pleasure.

"Do you want to buy her?" the woman asked him, "If not, then I'm afraid that she'll have to be put down for causing so much trouble."

The lingokeyen hissed at her, its two tails whipping around. Hiei thought for a moment.

"Fine," he finally grunted, "I'll buy it."

"She costs seventy-five galleons." Hiei blinked and looked at Kurama, who checked the bag of coins and carefully counted them. He realized that there was just barely enough.

Hiei passed the woman the coins and the lingokeyen purred loudly and rubbed against his cheek. The woman also gave him and Kurama some instructions as to how to care for their new pets on two pieces of paper.

"Now let's get out of here already," Hiei snapped, stuffing the paper in his pocket and reaching for the door. The lingokeyen stiffened as he walked out the door, but the blue barrier didn't come up and they were both suddenly outside in the fresh air. Golden light was shooting past the shop roofs. It was clearly getting close to sundown.

As the other three came out, Yusuke took a deep breath and stretched as though he'd just woken from a long and satisfying nap.

"Man it feels good to be out of there," he said, popping his shoulder, "it really stank in there." He started to walk off and Kurama, Kuwabara and Hiei automatically followed him.

"I thought you said you weren't going to get a pet," Kurama teased his demon friend.

"I bought it, but it's not my pet," Hiei growled. He stopped, grabbed the lingokeyen by the scruff of its neck, and dropped it on the pavement. It landed on its feet and looked at him in reproachful surprise.

"There you go," Hiei said in a bored voice, "you're on your own now." And without another word, he continued after Yusuke.

"What?" Kuwabara said in surprise. "You're just leaving it?"

"Yes," Hiei drawled.

"But you bought it! And it seemed to like you! And it was really expensive!" said Yusuke, looking back at the demon.

"So what?"

"You can't just leave it there!"

"Watch me." Yusuke, Kuwabara and Kurama sighed, knowing there was no way they could convince the irritable fire demon to change his mind.

The four walked in silence for a few minutes. Kurama suddenly glanced back.

"Apparently it's not as willing to leave you as you are to leave it," he said lightly to Hiei. Hiei, Yusuke, and Kuwabara turned around and sure enough, the little brown cat was padding after them with a blank expression. It stopped at Hiei's feet and stared up at him. The demon's lip curled.

"You don't have to follow me; I'm not your owner. You're free now. You can go do whatever you want," Hiei said to it.

"Want to be with you," the lingokeyen said simply. Hiei stared at it then let out a dry laugh.

"You don't want to be with me. You couldn't survive being with me for one day." The lingokeyen glared at him and said fiercely, "Want to stay with you."

"Well you can't," Hiei snapped at it, "go away before I make cat litter out of you!" the lingokeyen's ear's flattened against its head.

"You are so cruel," Kuwabara snarled at Hiei. He knelt by the cat and scooped it up in his arms. "Poor little kitty," he cooed, "don't worry, I'll take care of you, unlike that nasty little demon."

The cat's lips drew back in a snarl.

"Kuwabara, I'm not sure that's a good idea," said Kurama warningly. His owl bobbed its head in agreement.

"Don't worry, Kurama," said Kuwabara smugly, "I have a way with cats. I haven't even met a cat that doesn't like—AAAAAAHH!! GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF!!" he suddenly screamed as the lingokeyen snarled and sank its teeth and claws into his face and arms. He jumped up, and the lingokeyen leaped back and stopped at about twenty feet. Kurama shook his head.

"I hate to say I told you so…"

"Then keep your mouth shut," Kuwabara said angrily, wiping the blood off his clawed areas. Kurama put a hand to his mouth, obviously trying to hide a smile. Yusuke turned to Hiei.

"Hiei, was it talking to you?" Yusuke asked.

"Yes."

"What was it saying?"

"It wants to tag along with me, but I'm not letting it."

"Why not?" asked Kurama, and the owl hooted at Hiei in the same questioning tone as its master.

"Will you all just drop it?" Hiei spat in annoyance. "It's getting late. Let's just get back to the inn already." He turned his back on the lingokeyen and stalked off.

But when he glanced over his shoulder, the cat was following him again, at least ten feet behind, still with that determined expression.

"It's following you," said Yusuke needlessly.

"I know," Hiei said from between clenched teeth. "Just ignore it. It will leave."

But the lingokeyen didn't leave. It followed them for another twenty minutes, by which time darkness had fallen and Diagon Alley had almost emptied. Hiei was starting to get very annoyed.

"Fine, just try to keep up," Hiei growled. He looked at Yusuke, Kurama and Kuwabara. "I'll meet you at the inn later." And with that, he disappeared into thin air.

The lingokeyen blinked in alarm and looked at the other three questioningly.

"Don't ask us," Yusuke said with a shrug, "we don't know where he went." The cat growled and raised its head and sniffed deeply. Then it turned and ran off down the street and disappeared from sight behind a corner.

"That is one indomitable feline," said Kurama.

* * *

The three arrived at the inn half an hour later. They ordered some dinner and while they waited, Kurama helped Kuwabara with his scratches.

"That was the nastiest cat I've ever met," Kuwabara grumbled as Kurama put a bandage on his scratched wrist.

"Only to you," said Kurama fairly, "it seemed to really like Hiei."

"What could a cat possibly like about that jerk?" Kuwabara grunted angrily.

"Well Hiei did apparently let it out of its cage, so that probably counted for something." Kurama replied. Kuwabra grumbled disagreeably. Kurama finished putting on the last bandage just a minute before their dinner came flying toward them.

They ate in relative silence, all wondering about the same thing; the lingokeyen. After dinner, they stayed in the common room. Kurama started reading one of his new schoolbooks, while Yusuke and Kuwabara played a game called Gobstones by the fireplace. Kurama's owl was still perched on his shoulder, now fast asleep from the day's excitement. Eventually the room emptied until only the three of them and a man at the bar were left. Thirty minutes passed before the door opened and a familiar black-clad figure strode in. Kurama looked up from his book as Hiei sat in the chair next to him. No brown cat was in sight.

"So you shook it off," Kurama said mildly.

"Barely," Hiei growled, picking at a loose sliver of wood on the table. "I finally lost it down an alley. I then circled around on the rooftops and came back here."

"Things might have been easier if you'd just accepted it as your pet," said Kurama.

"Forget it, I'm not going to have that thing trailing after me like a lost puppy," Hiei snarled, pulling the splinter loose and flicking it into the fireplace. The wood made a loud popping sound and flared for a second before dying back down. Kurama sighed and shook his head.

About an hour later, Yusuke, Kuwabara, and Kurama went upstairs to bed. But Hiei stayed down in the dark, empty common room, perched on the moonlit windowsill. He stared pensively up at the black sky for a long time, silent and unmoving as a statue. Then, around midnight, he slid off the windowsill and swept upstairs as a shadowy breath of wind.

* * *

Dokkou: Okay, a bit of a cliffie but you guys can handle it. By the way, as to the names of the two animals in this chapter, Emopygmy and Lingokeyen...

Emopygmy I came up with my combining the first syllable of "emotion" (the color change ability) with pygmy, which means very small.

Lingokeyen I thought up by combining Lingo ("language" so that links to how the cat can talk) and Keyen which...ah...I randomly came up with myself. Lol.

Next Chapter--_I'm Back._

summary-- Hiei's new friend returns. But will he accept the lingokeyen or just kill the annoying thing? Who knows why the thing is REALLY following him?...what if it's..._some sort of spy_?! Hey what the...oh for God's sake, leave me alone you stupid cat!!

Anyway, please please please comment and tell me what you think!

* * *


	5. I'm Back

* * *

_Previously..._

_The three arrived at the inn half an hour later. They ordered some dinner and while they waited, Kurama helped Kuwabara with his scratches._

_"That was the nastiest cat I've ever met," Kuwabara grumbled as Kurama put a bandage on his scratched wrist._

_"Only to you," said Kurama fairly, "it seemed to really like Hiei." Kuwabara only grunted at this. Kurama finished putting on the last bandage just a minute before their dinner came flying toward them._

_They ate in relative silence, all wondering about the same thing; the lingokeyen. After dinner, they stayed in the common room. Kurama started reading one of his new schoolbooks, while Yusuke and Kuwabara played a game called Gobstones by the fireplace. Kurama's owl was still perched on his shoulder, now fast asleep from the day's excitement. Eventually the room emptied until only the three of them and a man at the bar were left. One hour passed before the door opened and a familiar black-clad figure strode in. Kurama looked up from his book as Hiei sat in the chair next to him. No brown cat was in sight._

_"So you shook it off," Kurama said mildly._

_"Barely," Hiei growled, picking at a loose sliver of wood on the table. "I finally lost it down an alley. I then circled around on the rooftops and came back here."_

_"Things might have been easier if you'd just accepted it as your pet," said Kurama._

_"Forget it, I'm not going to have that thing trailing after me like a lost puppy," Hiei snarled, pulling the splinter loose and flicking it into the fireplace. The wood made a loud popping sound and flared for a second before dying back down. Kurama sighed and shook his head. About an hour later, they all went up to bed._

* * *

Dokkou: Ta daaaa. Chapter five. I hope this one gets more reviews than my last chapter, which only got two! That's terrible!! Come on, people, it's not that hard to write a simple review like, "You rock!" or "Keep writing!" or "OMG I loved this story!" Hits don't necessarily mean that people liked reading it. Reviews do. So please tell me what you really think of it. If you think it sucks, then tell me WHY so that I don't delude myself into thinking it's the best story in the world (of course that's very unlikely to happen, but you get the idea). Thank you.

* * *

I'm Back

The next morning dawned bright and chilly. When Kurama came down to the common room at eight, he found three other customers and Hiei already there. Hiei was sitting on the sill of the largest window, looking out at the muggle world with a distant expression.

"Good morning, Hiei," said Kurama, sitting at the table closest to his friend. Hiei blinked and grunted. Kurama ordered for some coffee and a newspaper and idly traced patterns in the table's wood grain.

"I see your little stalker isn't here," Hiei said uninterestedly.

Kurama laughed. "You mean my owl?"

"Hn." Which Kurama took for a yes.

"No, he's still asleep. I've decided to name him Brummer."

"Brummer?" Hiei repeated slowly and derisively. "Why on earth did you name it that?"

Kurama said lightly, "Well, I was going to give him a name in Japanese, but when Ioffered a few names toTom, he seemed completely lost with the pronunciations. He gave me a few English names and I combined a couple and came up with Brummer. I think it sounds rather charming."

"Hn. Whatever. It's your owl."

"True."

For a long minute there was silence. Then Kurama looked up from the table to see a large cup of coffee and a rolled-up newspaper soaring toward him. He instinctively pulled back as its momentum carried both items right into his face, then they pulled back and landed softly on the table without spilling a singledrop of coffee. Kurama unrolled the newspaper and lifted his coffee to his lips. Just as he was about to take a sip, Hiei said, still in that bored and uninterested tone, "I wonder if that lingo-whatever is still alive."

Kurama slowly lowered his cup.

"Well, honestly I doubt it," he said softly. "It was at least thirty degrees last night, probably lower. Unless it found a house or something to sleep in for the night, I don't think it survived." He took a sip of coffee and regretted it. It burned his tongue and numbed his throat. There was another moment of silence, but it was different from before; this silence was pressing and grim.

Hiei slid off the window ledge and sat in the chair opposite Kurama. He didn't meet his friend's eyes, but stared very hard at the table.

"Would you like something to drink?" Kurama asked him.

"Hn." Luckily, Kurama spoke fluent Hiei and knew that that meant yes.

"We'll take one more coffee over here," said Kurama loudly. A minute later another cup of coffee was sailing toward their table. It landed gently in front of Hiei, who switched his crimsongaze to it instead of the table, which was lucky because a burn mark had begun to form. Kurama blew on his own hot coffee and watched Hiei spoon sugar in. The demon fox blinked in wonder as his friend put more than twenty spoonfuls in and stirred the mixture with a brooding expression.

"Would you like some coffee with that sugar?" Kurama said dryly. Hiei's lip curled and he downed half the cup in less than ten seconds before Kurama could warn him that it was burning hot. Yet when Hiei set the cup back on the table, he looked totally unfazed by the heat.

"Are you feeling guilty?" Kurama said to him carefully.

"Tch," Hiei said scornfully, "why would I be feeling guilty?"

"For sending that lingokeyen out on its own," Kurama answered.

"Why would I feel guilty?" Hiei snorted. "I gave it its freedom, which was more than it deserved."

"Right." He wasn't fooling anyone.

"Where are the detective and the baka?" Hiei asked, changing the subject.

"They're still asleep of course. And they might as well sleep," Kurama sighed, "because I honestly can't think of what else to do for the next three weeks, other than explore Diagon Alley some more and read ahead in my textbooks. I doubt that either of them will be interested in doing that."

"Probably not," Hiei said. That awkward, unpleasant silence came back.

"So, er, what did youplan to do today?" said Kurama, trying to start up the conversation for his friend's sake. Hiei shrugged.

"I don't know. Maybe try some magic and see if I can do any jinxes. The baka can be my practice dummy." Kurama gave a humorless laugh. Of course he wasn't going to let Hiei do that to Kuwabara. The poor human had it bad enough with the short fire demon.

Hiei drank the last of his coffee—which had still been steaming—and stood up.

"I think I'm going to try out that wand of mine," he said carelessly.

"If you want to, go ahead." Kurama watched his friend head for the stairs and he noticed that he had a slight slump in his shoulders.

_Could Hiei possibly be feeling guilty about that cat?_ Kurama wondered.

He suddenly blinked at a faint, high-pitched noise and looked around. He saw nothing that could have made it, except maybe a creaky door.

_Or my imagination,_ Kurama thought to himself as he lifted his now cool coffee to his lips. Then he froze as the noise came again. _I know that's not my imagination, so where's it coming from?_ His eyes swept over the window and then he did a double-take.

Through the frosted glass, he saw a very small, brown shape on the outside window ledge.

_It can't be._

But it was.

The lingokeyen let out another pathetic mew and clawed weakly at the window. Kurama sprang up and hurried to the window.

"Hiei!" he said loudly, "I think you should get over here!" he felt his long hair stir as though from a breath of wind and suddenly Hiei was standing right behind him.

"What is it?" he said swiftly. Kurama stepped aside so that Hiei could see what was beyond the window. Hiei's eyes widened at the sight of the little cat shivering behind the glass. "What are you doing here?" he growled, lifting the window up. The lingokeyen immediately leaped inside and landed on the tabletop. Hiei closed the window and he and Kurama sat at the table again.

The lingokeyen was shivering from head to the tips of its two slender tails. A light frost covered its light brown fur, making it look white, and its eyes were half closed; frozen shut.

"Have you been looking for me all night?" Hiei demanded.

"Mrrow," the lingokeyen said, or at least that was what it sounded like in Kurama's ears. What Hiei heard was, "Yes."

"Why?" Hiei said in frustration. "Why won't you just leave me alone?"

"I can't," the lingokeyen said unhappily. "I don't know where else to go. This world is scary. You let me out of that cage, so you're the only person I can trust." Hiei stared at it. Kurama was completely lost. Seeing his expression, Hiei sullenly repeated what the lingokeyen had just said to him.

"'The only person it can trust'," said Kurama pityingly. "That's too bad." Hiei pursed his lips as he looked at the cat, which let out a sneeze and shivered harder.

"Well, we should at least help it out," said Kurama. "Can we get a bowl of cream for this cat?" he said to the air. He extended a hand to the cat very slowly, palm up. The lingokeyen stared at it distrustfully.

"Here now, I'm not going to hurt you," Kurama said gently. The lingokeyen hissed loudly and swiped at his hand. But the swipe was so weak that it felt more like a small, frozen piece of cloth had swept over his fingers. The claws just barely grazed Kurama's finger enough to make a very tiny scratch, which bled a miniscule bead of blood. The lingokeyen swiped its tongue over Kurama's finger and then sneezed again. Kurama looked at his bloody finger curiously, and then blinked when he heard a whizzing noise. The two demons looked around to see a small bowl of cream fly toward them and settle gently on the table in front of the cat.

The lingokeyen lapped it up weakly but quickly. In less than a minute, the bowl was empty.

So, what are you going to do?" Kurama said, looking over at Hiei.

Hiei snorted. "Do? I'm not going to _do_ anything. That thing is _not_ staying with me."

"But Hiei…" Kurama started to argue.

"Look, if you don't want it out on its own, then _you_ take it," Hiei growled. He picked the cat up and thrust it at Kurama. But the cat dug its claws into his cloak and refused to detach itself. Hiei frowned.

"Let go," he hissed, trying to shake the cling-on off. But the lingokeyen only held on tighter. "Kurama, get it off!" The fox demon just shook his head. The cat was holding on tight to Hiei's chest. He grabbed the scruff of its neck and was about to jerk it off, even if his cloak came with it, when he paused.

The thing was freezing cold. Its fur was still stiff with frost, even though it was in a warm room. When Hiei's hand made contact with it, it shivered so much that the demon felt it go all the way up to his head.

"Please, I want to be with you," the cat mewed. Hiei bit his lip.

"But why?" he said to it doubtfully. "You would be in real danger of getting injured or burned around me."

"Heat doesn't affect me too much, and I'm pretty fast on my feet," the cat said quickly to him. "Besides, I have nowhere else to go. I won't disappoint you or get in your way, I promise."

He stared at the cat for a long moment and the cat stared right back. Hiei grumbled for a second and then snapped, "Fine, you can stay with me. But don't you dare get mad if I singe your tail or something or you're going straight to the dogs." Hiei secretly hoped that this threat would make the cat reconsider, but it only replied simply, "As you wish, Master."

"Don't call me Master," Hiei growled, finally managing to rip the cat off and set it back on the table.

"As you wish, Sir."

Hiei sighed. _What annoyances have I sentenced myself to? _He told Kurama what had just transpired, and when he finished, his friend looked delighted.

"So now you have a pet," Kurama grinned.

"Don't remind me," Hiei grunted as the lingokeyen curled up contentedly on his lap.

"I think having a pet will be good for you," said Kurama, returning to his now cold coffee.

"Hn."

"What are you going to name it?" said Kurama.

"Name it? Why name it?" Hiei snorted. Kurama looked at him reproachfully. "Hn," Hiei growled. He looked down at the sleeping cat and very hesitantly stroked it down its back. The lingokeyen purred in its sleep and its two purple-tipped tails twitched. Its light brown fur was getting warmer just by sitting in the fire demon's lap.

"Well, I have sort of been thinking of a name since I first saw it," said Hiei slowly. "I was thinking…Sandstorm, because of its fur, and because it's tenacious and irritating just like a sandstorm."

"I think that's a good name," said Kurama, curling his lip at the cold coffee. "You could call it Storm for short."

"Call _her_ Storm for short," said Hiei softly, stroking the cat. "It's a girl."

Kurama smiled. "Right. Sandstorm it is then." He held out a hand and gently scratched the cat's ears. It purred again, causing Kurama to beam with that joy that trusting animals always bring. "Welcome to the team, Sandstorm."

* * *

Dokkou: Okay short chapter and sorry about it ppl. I just didn't have very good inspriation for it.

Next chapter: Dumbledore's Vistit and Mounting Tension

Summary: Dumbledore comes to the Tantei for a brief talk, and a certain owl and cat come at dangerous odds with each other. And after that, the adventures on the Hogwarts Express begin!

* * *


	6. Dumbledore's Visit and Mounting Tension

_Previously..._

_"What are you going to name it?" said Kurama._

_"Name it? Why name it?" Hiei snorted. Kurama looked at him reproachfully._

_Hn," Hiei growled. He looked down at the sleeping cat and very hesitantly stroked it down its back. The lingokeyen purred in its sleep and its two purple-tipped tails twitched. Its light brown fur was getting warmer just by sitting in the fire demon's lap._

_"Well, I have sort of been thinking of a name since I first saw it," said Hiei slowly. "I was thinking…Sandstorm, because of its fur. And because it's tenacious and irritating just like a sandstorm."_

_"I think that's a good name," said Kurama, curling his lip at the cold coffee. "You could call it Storm for short."_

_"Call her Storm for short," said Hiei softly, stroking the cat. "It's a girl."_

_Kurama smiled. "Right. Sandstorm it is then." He held out a hand and gently scratched the cat's ears. It purred again, causing Kurama to beam with that joy that trusting animals always bring. "Welcome to the team, Storm."_

* * *

Chapter six! Yay! Thank you my lovely reviewers for...well, reviewing, and thank you EVERYONE who bothered to read my story. Your reviews make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. (hugs self) Anyway, I won't bore you with pointless dribble. On with the story!

* * *

Dumbledore's Visit and Mounting Tension

About an hour later, Yusuke and Kuwabara Came down to the bar, yawning and stretching. The sight that greeted them was of Kurama and Hiei sitting quietly at a dark table. Kurama was sipping at a second cup of coffee while reading the Daily Profit. Hiei was sitting across from him, picking at a plate of bacon. As Yusuke and Kuwabara approached, Kurama looked up from his paper in mock astonishment.

"Well what do you know, you're both alive after all," he said. "I was beginning to wonder if you had died in your beds."

"Oh shut up," Yusuke said grumpily. "For your information it's still really early. Your stupid early bird personality is rubbing off on me. And of course once I woke up, there was no way I was gonna let Kuwabara sleep in." He smirked as Kuwabara growled angrily. They both sat at the table and ordered breakfast.

While they waited, Yusuke noticed that Hiei was staring at something in his lap. His curiosity was roused somewhat.

"Hey whatcha got there, Hiei?" he asked, standing up and looking across the table. What he saw caught him totally by surprise. The lingokeyen stared up at him from Hiei's lap with a piece of bacon dangling from its mouth.

"What the hell?" Yusuke said in loud surprise making Kuwabara jump. "How did that cat get here?" The lingokeyen hissed at him, snatched a slice of bacon, and retreated to Hiei's lap.

"She hunted me down," Hiei replied, "And I decided to keep her." Yusuke realized in surprise that there was a note of pride in his voice. So Hiei repeated what the cat had been telling him for the last hour. Kurama barely listened because Hiei had already told him the cat's confession.

Sandstorm had followed his scent for an hour last night, but then lost it on a roof. Then she had remembered that Hiei had mentioned an inn to his friends and she'd gone off to look for it. With a little help and directions from the stray cats around the stores, she found the Leaky Cauldron and sure enough, Hiei's scent right at the door. She'd circled the inn many times trying to find a way in, but to no avail. So she slept in a sheltered area during the night and then went around the inn again several times in the morning and that was when Kurama saw her outside the window. By the end of the story, Yusuke and Kuwabara were both looking at the cat with a new kind of respect. But she ignored their looks and ate shreds of bacon on Hiei's lap as though she'd been doing it for years.

"Wild," Yusuke said as his and Kuwabara's food flew over to them. "Who knew that cat had it in her?"

"She's smarter than she lets on," said Kurama, not looking up from his paper. Storm purred at his praise.

Yusuke suddenly grinned hugely and held out a fork to Hiei. The short fire demon looked at it. Yusuke said smugly, "Here's a fork so you can eat your words about not getting a pet." Hiei glared at him mutinously and snatched the fork.

"Sorry, I'm not hungry," he said stiffly, and the metal fork melted in his hand.

* * *

The next few days at the Leaky cauldron passed quietly, as each of the four were somewhat involved in their own separate activities. Kurama spent most of his time wandering around Diagon Alley and especially the bookstore. Yusuke and Kuwabara practiced with their wands a little, with some help from Tom, and Hiei took Sandstorm around the muggle and magical areas. And thus when they all came back from their separate excursions to the common room of the Leaky Cauldron late on the afternoon of the fourth day, they were content and relaxed, and not at all prepared for what was coming up next.

It happened right after dinner. Kurama was sitting at a table reading a book as usual. Yusuke and Kuwabara were going through a stack of books pointing at and discussing hexes and jinxes on the paged they were hoping they would someday learn. Hiei was sitting on the windowsill with Sandstorm asleep in his lap. Only a few other people were in the bar, so everything was fairly quiet. And then suddenly everyone jumped at the sound of a crack like a gunshot outside the Leaky Cauldron entrance. The tentei all jumped up in alarm, but most of the other people hardly gave any reaction at all. Yusuke, Kuwabara, Hiei and Kurama waited tensely as they heard footsteps approaching outside. Then the door opened and a familiar figure strode in.

The tentei weren't the only ones who looked up in surprise as Dumbledore swept across the room and stood before the table that Kurama, Yusuke and Kuwabara sat at. Kurama was the first who was able to speak. Dumbledore was dressed in long, flowing green robes with intricate designs of vines and swirls in silver thread.

"Professor Dumbledore?" he said, "What are you doing here?" Tom suddenly came shuffling out of the room behind the bar and he froze in surprise when he saw the tall old wizard.

"Professor Dumbledore, Sir, can I help you with something?" Tom asked.

"Why yes Tom indeed," Said Dumbledore graciously. "I was wondering if I could take my four soon-to-be students into a private room for a discussion. Perhaps have a little tea as well…"

"Of course, Sir," said Tom. He coughed and looked at the wizard and the tentei. "If you'll al follow me, I'll take you to a nice quiet room." He turned and shuffled away.

Dumbledore smiled at the tentei and followed after Tom. The four looked at each other in bewilderment, but then stood up and caught up with Dumbledore and the innkeeper wondering what on earth was going on.

Tom stopped before a heavy wooden door and pulled out a key and stuck it in the lock. One turn of the key and the door swung open on its rusty hinges.

"After you, after you," he said, stepping back and allowing Dumbledore and the tentei to enter first. Inside was a simple room. There was a large wooden table with six chairs around it and a fireplace. There was some decoration on the walls, but it was very plain.

"Thank you, Tom. Now I would greatly appreciate it if you could bring us some tea, and maybe those little ginger snaps I enjoy so much," said Dumbledore lightly.

"Of course, Sir. I'll be right back then," said Tom, and he hurried out of the room and closed the door behind him.

Dumbledore pulled his wand out of his sleeve and pointed it at the fireplace. There was a flash and suddenly a roaring fire was burning in the hearth.

"That's much better. It was quite chilly in here," said Dumbledore. He took a seat at one end of the table and motioned for the tantei to sit down also. They did so, never once taking their eyes from the old wizard. Sandstorm was now perched on Hiei's shoulder, watching the action with a grave expression.

"So," Yusuke said slowly, "um…what's going on?"

"Oh the explanations can wait after tea," said Dumbledore cheerfully. Hiei snorted.

"Don't waste our time," he growled, "just spit out what you want to say and—"

"It can wait until the tea gets here," Dumbledore interrupted, and suddenly his voice was low and very serious and, to Hiei, slightly threatening. The fire demon fell into a brooding silence. For a few minutes, the five sat without speaking. Dumbledore was humming a low tune to himself, looking around at the decorations with polite interest. Yusuke, Kuwabara and Hiei all grew impatient, but just before they were going to prompt the old man into speech, Tom cam back into the room bearing a large tray of tea and ginger snaps.

"Here you are, Sir, just as you asked." Said Tom, setting the tray in the middle of the table.

"Thank you, Tom," said Dumbledore joyously. "Now if you could please excuse us, there is a very private matter which I and my new students must discuss."

The tantei's ears pricked with a new interest.

"Of course, Professor Dumbledore," said Tom, and he backed out of the room and closed the heavy wooden door. Dumbledore waited a moment, then flicked his wand and murmured, "Silencio". Then he pointed it at the door and said "Dimortima" and he reached for his tea.

"There, that's much better," he said, sipping at it. "Now no one will be able to listen in on what we'll be talking about."

"And what are we going to talk about?" Yusuke asked from the end directly opposite Dumbledore. The old wizard's face turned serious and grave.

"I'm afraid that I have made a critical error," he said softly. "The last few hours have been very tiring for me. Something which I had not been expecting happened to Harry."

"Something happened to Harry?" Yusuke repeated sharply. "What?"

"I don't suppose any of you know what dementors are?" said Dumbledore. Yusuke and Kuwabara glanced at each other and then shook their heads. But Kurama and Hiei both stiffened and their faces hardened.

"I see that two of you do," said Dumbledore softly. "Well barely one hour ago, two dementors attacked Harry at his home." Hiei and Kurama both pulled in short gasps of shock.

"Did they…? did they take his…?" Kurama trailed off worriedly.

"No. Harry did not lose his soul. In fact he managed to come away unscathed from the ordeal, something that amazes me to no end." Dumbledore replied.

"How…why did dementors attack him?" Hiei asked softly.

Dumbledore answered him calmly, "It is my belief that those two dementors were sent by Lord Voldemort to kill Harry. Harry came dangerously close to losing his life, and that has stiffened my resolve. Harry is going to be taken to a secret house called Grimmauld place, which is the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix. The Order was the organization that fought Voldemort fifteen years ago when he was in power. I'm quite sure that with the Order members all around him, Harry will be under impenetrable protection, but still I worry..." he interlocked his fingers and looked into his teacup with a distant expression.

"Why are you telling us all this?" Yusuke asked. "Do you want us to go to this Grimauld Place or something?"

"No, I don't think so. You're protection will be unnecessary at Grimmauld Place. I'm telling you this because I assumed that you would want to know if any major events happened to Harry, as he is your charge."

"Yes, and we appreciate it," said Kurama, taking a sip from his teacup.

"This ningen boy sounds like a real trouble magnet," Hiei muttered.

"He is, rather," Dumbledore responded with a small smile as he took a ginger snap. "But that's why I called in the best: you four.

"Well, that is all that I came here to speak with you about. I will leave you to your own busy devices unless you have any questions for me."

"I have one," said Kurama.

"Do ask me," Dumbledore smiled.

Kurama set his teacup down and clasped his hands together. "We're here on this mission to protect Harry Potter, but neither he nor anyone else knows that demons exist. What should we do if we are facing an enemy in plain view of Harry and we need to use our powers? He is sure to recognize that our abilities are not ones that wizards possess."

"Ah, an excellent question," Dumbledore said. "If such an event pops up, I expect you to use your powers and exercise absolutely no restraint." The words were posed casually, but everyone felt the incredible influence of them. "Any other questions?"

"If we deem them threatening, are we allowed to incinerate humans as well?" Hiei asked hopefully.

Dumbledore gazed at him dryly. "Yes, you are allowed to destroy humans who truly intend to _kill you_, but _only_ if they intend to kill you."

Hiei's face fell in obvious disappointment.

"Any other questions you would like to get out of the way?" Dumbledore said wryly.

"Nope." said Yusuke languidly.

"Nuh-uh." Kuwabara said, shaking his head.

"No, none thank you." said Kurama politely.

"Hn." Hiei said sulkily.

"Then I will take my leave," said Dumbledore, standing up. "I hope you all enjoy the rest of your stay here at the Leaky Cauldron. I shall of course inform you is something else particularly unpleasant happens to Harry, in which case you probably all will go to Grimmauld Place. Good day." And he strode out of the room, his long green robes fluttering behind him.

* * *

The next few weeks at the Leaky Cauldron passed by slowly and lazily. Then, at long last, August 31st came, and it brought with it all the anxiety and excitement of the final moment before a much anticipated event. The tantei packed all of their belongings and checked and rechecked their rooms for anything they may have missed. At 7:00 P.M. the tantei gathered together at a corner table of the bar, which was nearly empty. Food was ordered and the four comrades ate in silence. Even Yusuke and Kuwabara weren't stuffing their faces; heir minds were focused on September 1—tomorrow—when they would board the Hogwarts Express and finally head off to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Hiei was distractedly stirring a bowl of soup while Yusuke and Kuwabara devoured French fries when Kurama suddenly let out a gasp and made them all jump.

"Kurama, what is it?" Yusuke said quickly.

"My potions book!" Kurama moaned. "I just remembered that I haven't packed it!" The others glared at him and Kuwabara said, "You got us all worked up just because you forgot a book? You have plenty of time to stick it in your suitcase tomorrow morning."

Kurama abruptly stood up. "I can't remember where I put it!" he said miserably.

"Do you have any clue where it could be?" Yusuke asked the fox demon.

"No! But I guess I can go check my room again…" the chair practically tipped over as Kurama rushed away to the stairs, and other customers stared at him in surprise.

"Wait!" Kuwabara yelled, "Can't you look later and eat first?"

"Kurama's voice issued, faint and muffled, from the stairs: "No!" Kuwabara sighed and leaned back in his seat.

"What's he so uptight about?" he said in annoyance.

"Kurama is nervous," Hiei spoke up softly as he idly stirred his tomato soup. "I think we all are."

"Yeah, maybe," said Yusuke pensively, taking a sip of his coffee. For a minute, the three of them listened to the sounds of a room on the floor above them being torn apart.

"Kurama has no need to worry," said Hiei. They heard a loud thump above the ceiling and Hiei shook his head. "Sandstorm!" he called out. A second of silence passed; there was a rustle and a scuffle and then a brown blur raced toward the three of them, weaving expertly between the table and chair legs before taking a flying leap and landing neatly on Hiei's shoulder. A large purr erupted from its mouth.

"There you are," Hiei drawled, scratching the light brown cat's ears. It's twin tails waved as it meowed questioningly at him.

"Don't call me Master," Hiei snapped. "Now, I need you to find a book for me. It's a large, leather-bound volume with the word 'potions' on it. Kurama is going to tear this inn apart if this book isn't found soon." The lingokeyen's ears twitched at the noises of destruction on the floor above. "I want you to go look for it," said Hiei. Straightening formally, the cat and gave a curt nod and meowed. It spun and leaped gracefully from Hiei's shoulder and zoomed off between the table legs into the shadows. Hiei smirked and finally started to eat his soup.

"You think Sandstorm can find that book?" Yusuke said to the fire demon curiously.

"Fairly sure," Hiei responded. "I've been training her over the last couple of weeks to identify objects, letters, even sentences. This will be her hardest test yet, but I believe she will pass." There were a couple of minutes during which only Kurama's frantic searching could be heard. Then quick footsteps pounded down the stairs and Kurama raced over to their table, breathing hard and looking panicked.

"I couldn't find it!" he panted.

"Relax. It will be found," Hiei said leisurely as he dropped his spoon into his empty soup bowl. "Just sit and wait for a moment." Kurama bit his lip, but stiffly sat down in a chair next to Yusuke. There was a terse minute of waiting, in which Kurama's fingers drummed impatiently on the tabletop. Suddenly, there was a screech and a yowl on the floor above. The tantei looked up at the ceiling perplexedly. There was a scraping, flapping noise at the stairs; all heads turned toward it.

A small, misshapen airborne ball of feathers clutching a large brown item erupted down the stairs and shot straight at the tantei's table, closely followed by a brown blur. Kuwabara let out a yell and the four of them dived out of the way. The ball of feathers and the misshapen object landed smack on the table and slid a few feet, getting covered in food and knocking dishes aside. The brown blur launched into the air and tackled the feathery ball, which let out a terrified screech. It struggled and managed to get free from Sandstorm's grasp and flop on the tabletop. It stayed still long enough to be revealed as a tiny owl, which at the moment was as white as snow. Next to the owl was a large leather-bound book lying face-down on a plate of mashed potatoes.

"Brummer!" Kurama cried in shock.

"Sandstorm!" Hiei said angrily. The lingokeyen let out a furious hiss and unsheathed her claws. She jumped in a graceful arc at Brummer, talons glinting in the light. She was barely an inch away from the feathery body when Hiei grabbed both her tails and jerked her back. She let out a yowl as she was held upside down.

"What do you think you are doing?" Hiei hissed at her angrily. Kurama quickly scooped his owl up and stroked his feathers back into place.

"What on earth is going—my book!" he said in surprise. With his free hand, Kurama lifted the leather-bound tome out of the mashed potatoes and turned it over. The word Potions glittered in green letters through the white mess.

"Brummer! You found my potions book?" said Kurama, looking down at his ruffled little owl. Sandstorm let out a screech and wailed at Hiei. He looked at her curiously and when she stopped meowing, Hiei said doubtfully, "You say that you were going for the book but the owl got there first…?" Sandstorm let out a firm meow. "That sounds highly unbelievable," said Hiei. The cat swung in his hand, nearly meowing her head off. Hiei's eyebrows raised.

"Are you seriously calling that owl a thief?" the fire demon said incredulously. Sandstorm growled. Hiei sighed and shook his head. Then he said, "If I let you go, will you promise not to attack the owl?" Sandstorm hesitated; Hiei frowned and swung her a little by her tails. Sandstorm meowed angrily, and Hiei released her. The cat writhed, as she fell, and landed neatly on her feet atop the table. Her glowing green eyes were fixed on the bedraggled owl in Kurama's arms, but she made no move toward it.

"Um," Yusuke said in confusion, "what was that all about?"

"Apparently," Hiei replied, "Sandstorm found the book behind the headboard of Kurama's bed, but when she pulled it out into the open, the owl 'came out of nowhere' and grabbed the book from right under her nose, saying that it was _his_ master's book, thus _he_ was responsible for bringing it to Kurama. Right, Storm?"

Sandstorm snapped her teeth in confirmation. Kurama wiped the mashed potato mess off his potions book and sighed. Brummer let out a melancholy hoot and turned a deep blue color. Kurama gave him a weary smile.

"Well, I appreciate you trying to help me but it wasn't necessary to be so rude to Sandstorm," he said. Brummer ducked his head in shame.

"Look on the bright side!" Yusuke grinned. "You got your book back!"

"Indeed," Kurama said dryly, flicking a clump of potato off the 'P' in 'Potions'.

Sandstorm clawed the tabletop, ears flat against her skull and her eyes narrowed.

"What's wrong?" Hiei asked her. She let out a murmured meow. "You didn't fail your order," Hiei said patiently. "You found the book, like I told you to; you just didn't bring it back." Sandstorm looked up at him hopefully and mewed/

"Yes really," Hiei drawled.

"Sandstorm erupted into a purr and leaped onto Hiei's shoulder. Hiei smirked a little and stroked her head.

Yusuke yawned loudly and stretched. "So tell me again how we're getting to the train station tomorrow?"

"we're going by the Floo Network," Kurama answered as Brummer hopped up on his shoulder and slowly turned back to his normal brown color.

"The Floo Network?" Kuwabara repeated. "What's that?"

"Tom said he would explain tomorrow morning," Kurama said. Then he sighed. "I'm too wound up to do anything else tonight. I'll be up in my room trying to fix up this book." Potions book in hand, owl on shoulder, Kurama turned and headed up the stairs to his room.

Hiei scratched Sandstorm's ears then headed for the door that leads to the muggle world.

"Where are you going?" Yusuke inquired.

"I'm restless," Hiei muttered, "I need some fresh air." He pulled the door open and disappeared into the shadows. From Hiei's shoulder, Sandstorm's green eyes glittered at Yusuke and Kuwabara. Then the door closed with a soft click and both cat and demon were gone.

Yusuke and Kuwabara sat back in their chairs. During the excitement, the scattered dishes had magically disappeared, leaving only a spotless wooden table. Kuwabara traced a pattern in the wood grain with his finger in a pensive manner.

"So. Tomorrow's the big day," he said after a minute of silence.

Yusuke leaned back in his chair and stared at the fire lit ceiling. "Yup."

"It's gonna be weird," said Kuwabara thoughtfully. "I've sort of gotten used to being here at the Leaky Cauldron and Diagon Alley. This almost feels like we'll be leaving home…"

"Home? Nah," Yusuke said brazenly. "I've already got a home waiting for me in Japan. So do you, and Kurama, and…well, I don't know about Hiei. But this place doesn't feel like home. I miss Keiko and even Genkai, and I really miss beating up street punks who tick me off."

"I like it here," said Kuwabara. "It's kind of peaceful."

"Oh don't tell me you're going soft!" Yusuke said, grinning suddenly at his friend. Kuwabara smirked back.

"No way, Urameshi! Once we get to Hogwarts, we'll find some new punks to beat up. Right?" He held up his closed fist to Yusuke.

"Ha! Totally! They won't know what hit them!" Yusuke laughed, and he knocked his own fist against Kuwabara's. "We are going to rule that school!"

* * *

Ta da! Pretty exciting huh?! Huh?! (crickets chirping in background) Well, I thought it was while I wrote it. I'm sorry I updated sort of late this time. I've been a lazy lump lately... Anywho...

Next chapter:

To Hogwarts at Last!

Summary:

Yusuke, Kuwabara, Kurama and Hiei are finally headed to King's cross and to Hogwarts. But along the way, they're finally going to meet the person they were sent to protect, and naturally make some more enemies. _(cough)_ Malfoy _(cough)..._

* * *


	7. The Hogwarts Express

* * *

_Previously..._

_"It's gonna be weird," said Kuwabara thoughtfully. "I've sort of gotten used to being here at the Leaky Cauldron and Diagon Alley. This almost feels like we'll be leaving home…"_

_"Home? Nah," Yusuke said brazenly. "I've already got a home waiting for me in Japan. So do you, and Kurama, and…well, I don't know about Hiei. But this place doesn't feel like home. I miss Keiko and even Genkai, and I really miss beating up street punks who tick me off."_

_"I like it here," said Kuwabara. "It's kind of peaceful."_

_"Oh don't tell me you're going soft!" Yusuke said, grinning suddenly at his friend. Kuwabara smirked back._

_"No way, Urameshi! Once we get to Hogwarts, we'll find some new punks to beat up. Right?" He held up his closed fist to Yusuke._

_"Ha! Totally! They won't know what hit them!" Yusuke laughed, and he knocked his own fist against Kuwabara's. "We are going to rule that school!"_

* * *

Dokkou: Chapter seven! Yay! Sorry I took so long to update, i've been busy. Anyway... Thank you, everyone, for reviewing! I really appreciated your comments and suggestions. I hope you enjoy the rest of my story. Now read!!

* * *

To Hogwarts at Last! New Friends and Enemies

Despite their confidence, Yusuke and Kuwabara spent a relatively sleepless night. When morning came, a certain demon fox bounced into both of their rooms and woke them up in a decidedly unpleasant manner. They both oozed out of their beds and down the stairs with sleepy moans.

Sitting at a table, fully dressed, was the hated demon fox who looked up from his newspaper and coffee and smiled innocently at Yusuke and Kuwabara as they collapsed into chairs across from him with rather wet squelches.

"Well good morning!" Kurama said cheerfully.

"Good nothing!" Yusuke snarled. "I hate you, Kurama!"

Kurama pulled back in mock astonishment. "Why whatever do you mean?"

"You didn't have to wake us up by throwing buckets of ice on us!" Kuwabara yelled at the fox. "We would have woken up if you had just said, 'Wakey wakey, eggs and bacey'!"

"Yes, you would have woken up," said Kurama mildly, returning to his newspaper. "But then you would have fallen right back asleep. I was only doing what was necessary to keep you awake. We can't afford a minute of delay today."

"So why didn't you go and ruin the rest of Hiei's morning?" Yusuke grumbled as a cup of coffee flew through the air and landed in front of him.

Kurama gave him a dry look over his newspaper. "There are two reasons that I didn't 'ruin Hiei's morning': First, it would be a death sentence on my part to approach him with a single cube of ice, especially if he was asleep. Second, I currently have no idea where Hiei is."

"Shouldn't we go find him then?" said Yusuke. "I mean, he needs to get ready as much as we do."

"Ha!" Kuwabara barked. "I say we forget him and go to Hogwarts without him! If he's late, then it's his own fault!"

"Who's late if it's whose fault?" a sluggish voice sounded behind Kuwabara. Kuwabara let out a squeal and he and his chair fell over backwards. Hiei took a lazy step back a split second before Kuwabara's head smacked on the floor where he had just been standing.

"I see you are ungainly and clumsy even before the day has started," Hiei said, rubbing his eye and yawning. Kuwabara sprang up and bared his teeth at the short demon.

"You little jerk!" Kuwabara shouted. "I'm gonna punch you into next week!"

"If you can't land a hit on me at the peak of your physical prowess, what makes you think you can hit me when you're still half asleep?" Hiei drawled.

"Let's find out!" Kuwabara hissed. He drew his fist back and launched it at Hiei with all the strength he had. Hiei stared disdainfully at the onslaught, and then slid about five inches to the left, lip curled. Kuwabara's fist sailed past him and ended up punching a large divot in the floor.

"AAAAAAGH!!" Kuwabara yelled. "That hurt!"

"Then don't do it," Hiei said in a bored tone as Yusuke and Kurama snickered in the background. "Just make sure you don't hit your head; that poor little excuse for a brain is in a sorry enough state."

"WHY YOU LITTLE!"

"Hey, hey, hey, didn't Kurama say that we couldn't afford to be late?" Yusuke intervened. "Let's not be wasting time with fights we can't win,_ Kuwabara_."

"I can beat that little punk!" Kuwabara shouted. "If he just held still for three stupid seconds, then I would—" he was cut off by Kurama shoving a large piece of toast into his mouth.

"We really don't have time for this," he said with an apologetic smile. "Let's just finish breakfast so that we can go. The train will be leaving in a couple of hours."

"But the Floo Network doesn't take very long, does it?" Yusuke asked as Hiei sat down next to him and helped himself to a piece of bacon. "Don't we have plenty of time?"

"Goodness no!" said Kurama. "Not if we want to be there a half hour early!"

His comrades all gave him a disgusted look.

"And why would we want to show up thirty minutes early?" Hiei growled.

Kurama began to count on his fingers: "To get good seats on the train; to meet new people; to find Harry Potter; to find our way around, and to allow us extra time in case we get lost."

"Kurama you worry too much," Yusuke said lazily. "Everything will be fine. Don't worry."

"Every time someone says that, something happens to make us worry," Kurama mumbled.

* * *

Despite Kurama's pestering, the rest of the tantei flat-out refused to rush themselves. By the time they were finished eating, packing, and were basically ready about five minutes before they had to leave, Kurama was in a very tetchy mood. Yusuke, Kuwabara, and Hiei ignored him though.

The four of them stood in front of the fireplace in the common room, staring at the licking red flames, waiting. Their bags sat nonchalantly beside them. They were already dressed in their black Hogwarts robes. Only Hiei seemed comfortable with the attire; he used to it, after all. Yusuke and Kuwabara kept fidgeting and tugging at their collars.

Kurama's owl, Brummer, was nowhere in sight; he had already started the lonely flight to Hogwarts. Sandstorm was perched on Hiei's shoulder, purring as he stroked her back distractedly. None of them spoke; the tension in the atmosphere was too dominating. Suddenly, Tom came through a door holding a small leather drawstring bag. Coming up to the tantei, he smiled and said, "Found it. I knew it was in my dresser drawer."

"Is that the Floo powder?" Kurama said.

"Indeed it is," said Tom proudly. He pulled the strings apart, revealing a pile of sparkling green dust that was quite beautiful to look at. "Now then, traveling by Floo powder is easy, but it can be a bit daunting for a newcomer," Tom said. "All ya have to do is take a pinch of this here powder and throw it into the fire and shout where ya want to go. Then ya just step into the fire and hold onto your breakfast."

"Sounds simple enough," Kurama said. "I'll try first." He grabbed his luggage and a pinch of Floo powder. He tossed the powder into the fireplace and jumped back when the fire gave a great roar and turned a violent green. He glanced at Tom doubtfully. The innkeeper gave him an encouraging nod. Kurama took a deep breath and stiffly walked into the green fire. It didn't burn him at all.

"King's Cross Station!" Kurama said loudly. Immediately, he felt himself spin around, faster and faster. Objects and places whirled around him in a multi-colored blur. He was just feeling like he was about to lose his breakfast when he suddenly stopped spinning and was thrust out of a brick fireplace onto a hard stone floor. With lightning reflexes, he put his hands out and catapulted himself into the air, where he did a graceful flip and landed on his feet.

The cool effect was ruined somewhat as his luggage was spat out of the fire behind him and smacked into his head.

"Ow," he muttered. He picked up his bag just as a roaring sound issued from behind him. He turned around to see Hiei dizzily lean against the wall. Sandstorm was still clutching his shoulder. Her eyes were wide and her ears were flat back against her skull.

"You both okay?" Kurama said to them.

"I'll be fine as soon as Sandstorm _pries her claws out of my skin_," Hiei said loudly. Sandstorm let out an apologetic meow and sheathed her claws. Hiei rubbed the small puncture spots in his shoulder. Kurama looked around at the place they were in. The walls were solid concrete, and along the wall Hiei was leaning along was a row of brick fireplaces. Every minute or so, a wizard or witch would appear out of fireplace in a gout of roaring green flames. Kurama turned his head back to the fireplace he had come out of just in time to see Yusuke fly out of the fireplace and fall on the floor on his face.

"Ow!" Yusuke shouted. Kurama chuckled and stepped forward to help him to his feet. However, a second later, he backed away just as Kuwabara shot out and landed heavily on top of Yusuke.

"Get off me, you lump!" Yusuke snarled. Kuwabara punched the back of Yusuke's head and stood up, grumbling. Yusuke jumped to his feet, irritably rubbing his head.

"Are you two aright?" Kurama said, hiding a smile behind his hand.

"Yeah," Yusuke said, and Kuwabara grunted. "Where's our train? The Hogwarts Express?"

"Over there," Hiei grunted, pointing. The others looked around.

A huge crimson steam engine sat complacently on a railway, periodically sending out jets of steam from its smoke stack. People were crowded around it and the air was heavy with hundreds of conversations all happening at the same time. People were giving one wall in particular a good distance, and a moment later the reason was revealed; a young wizard with a trolley burst out of the wall, panting slightly. It was all a slightly daunting sight.

"Nyeh," Yusuke shrugged. "Not too shabby."

"Are you kidding?" Hiei said distastefully. "I've seen much more impressive engines in demon world—at least three times bigger." He blinked when he felt a paw bat his cheek. He turned and frowned at Sandstorm. "What?" he demanded.

"Master"—a deadly frown—"I mean, Hiei, may I please leave and explore around this place? I hear the sound of many other cats and I am eager to meet them," she said, her green eyes sparkling with excitement. Hiei rolled his eyes.

"Fine. But just make sure you're on the train when the whistle blows, or you'll be left behind."

"Yes Mas—Hiei. Thank you." She leaped off his shoulder and disappeared in the thronging crowd of wizards and witches. Hiei looked after her with just a hint of a worried frown.

"Aw, what's the matter, Hiei? Miss her already?" Kuwabara snickered in a mocking voice. Hiei closed his eyes. For a second nothing happened. Then Kuwabara suddenly lurched forward--as if pushed by an invisible force-- and fell smack on his face on the floor.

"You're starting to make a bad habit of falling like that," Hiei drawled.

"WHY YOU LITTLE!" Kuwabara sprang up and threw a volley of punches at the fire demon, which dodged every punch with a bored expression.

Kurama sighed and glanced at a clock hanging on a nearby wall.

"We still have twenty minutes before the train departs," he announced.

"Plenty of time! Let's go find seats!" Yusuke said with a confident grin, and he grabbed Kuwabara's robe collar and dragged him toward the train. Kurama glanced down at Hiei with an innocent and mildly amused expression.

"Don't even think about it," Hiei growled, stepping away. "I can walk myself." And he quickly headed toward the scarlet steam engine. Kurama chuckled and followed after.

* * *

"See any empty compartments?" Kuwabara said, glancing through the frosted window into yet another full little room.

"Nope." Yusuke replied.

"Perhaps we should find Harry Potter," Kurama suggested. "After all, our mission is to stay around him as much as possible."

As he strode down the narrow aisle of the train, Yusuke replied, "Great idea, Kurama. Just a couple of teeny little problems with that." He held up a finger. "One, we don't know what Harry looks like and two--"he held up another finger—"the kid could be anywhere on this train."

"Actually I'm sure we could find him rather easily," Kurama argued. "He is probably quite popular so he is most likely to be in the fullest compartment."

"Or," Hiei piped up suddenly, "he's right down the aisle over there." He pointed, and the others followed his finger. "Listen," Hiei said softly. His comrades fell silent, and from the low, muffled murmurs that sounded from the compartments around them, they picked out one conversation in particular:

"Sorry, Harry, but now that we're prefects, we have to go up to a car at the front to be briefed so um…" the female voice trailed off awkwardly.

"Oh…oh it's okay," a falsely cheery male voice replied. "You go and uh, have fun!"

"We don't want to go!" another male voice said quickly, "but we have to… it's probably going to be really boring and stuff."

"It's okay, really! You go ahead," the falsely happy voice responded.

"Okay, Harry," the female voice said sadly, "we'll see you soon."

"Sure." A compartment door about ten feet down the aisle from the tantei slid open; a girl with bushy, curly brown hair and a tall, gangly boy with flaming red hair and freckles stepped backward out of the compartment.

"Bye, Mate," the red-haired boy said regretfully.

"See you, Ron." the boy called Ron closed the door, and he and the girl strode off down the aisled in the opposite direction of Yusuke and his friends.

"So Harry Potter must be in that compartment," Kuwabara observed.

"Obviously," Hiei snorted.

"Come on, let's go," said Kurama before Kuwabara could snap back at Hiei. "And remember to be _polite_. We don't want to alienate Harry." He nudged Hiei as he added this. The fire demon grunted as he, Kurama, and Kuwabara followed Yusuke down the aisle. When they came to the door of Harry's compartment, Yusuke turned to the others. "Ready?" He said.

"Let's get it over with," Hiei drawled. Yusuke cleared his throat, raised his hand, and rapped on the door. Then he slid it back.

"Hello!" he said loudly. A boy looking glumly out the window jumped and looked around perplexedly.

"Erm, hello," he responded. He had messy black hair that looked like it had never met a comb, and rounded glasses. His eyes were a startling green color, and he was very thin. Yusuke thought he looked like a nerd.

There were two other people in the compartment as well; a girl with long, flaming red hair similar to Ron's, and another girl with long, dirty-blond hair who was reading a magazine upside down.

"The other compartments are full," Yusuke said casually. "Do you mind if we sit here?"

"Um, no, go ahead," the bespectacled boy said, scooting over on the seat.

"Thanks," said Yusuke, stepping in. He sat himself next to the boy and motioned for Kurama, Kuwabara and Hiei to sit as well. The boy and the red-haired girl watched them file in and settle down. Hiei sat by the window (naturally), and Kurama sat between him and the blond-haired girl, who hadn't looked up once during the tantei's entrance.

On the opposite side, Yusuke and Kuwabara squeezed themselves in next to the boy with glasses and the red-haired girl, with Yusuke closest to the window.

"So," Kurama said with a polite smile, "On to the introductions. My name is Shuichi Minamino, but my friends call me Kurama. It's a pleasure to meet you mister…" He trailed off, his eyebrows raised in false curiosity, as he held his hand out formally to the black-haired boy. The boy took it, and realized he liked the way this Kurama spoke; he had a very calm, controlled, nice voice that brought to mind images of Remus Lupin. He was handsome, if a little feminine (especially with that super long, perfect, red hair), but one could easily imagine that feminine trait to be of a cat's. Kurama's appearance also seemed very neat, and his movements and overall attitude were very relaxed yet slightly formal.

"You don't know who he is?" the red-haired girl said in surprise as the black-haired boy shook Kurama's hand.

"Why no," said Kurama innocently, "Should I?" The girl opened her mouth in disbelief, but before she could say anything, the black-haired boy said, "My name is Harry. Harry Potter." He waited for the strangers eyes to widen in amazement, for their gazes to rake his forehead in search of the infamous scar, for some reaction of incredulity or astonishment.

But, to Harry's surprise, no such reaction came.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Potter," said Kurama benignly. Harry stared at him wonderingly, and then felt his heart soar. These strangers didn't know anything about him! That meant they wouldn't make preemptive judgments based on what Harry had done in the past. Maybe they would just treat him like a normal kid.

"I'm Yusuke Urameshi," grinned the boy with slicked-back black hair. His voice was very confident and had the lisp of a smart-aleck.

"I'm Kazuma Kuwabara, but just call me Kuwabara," said the boy with orange hair. His voice was much rougher than Yusuke's, but it didn't sound nearly as dominating; you could tell that he was actually a nice person.

"I'm Ginny Weasley," said the girl with red hair.

"It's nice to meet you," said Kurama, turning and flashing her a dreamboat smile. Ginny turned slightly pink and cast her eyes down, a small smile tentatively crossing her face. Kurama had that effect on most girls.

"I'm Luna Lovegood," a dreamy voice said suddenly. Everyone looked around at the girl who was reading the magazine upside down. She had finally torn her very protuberant eyes from her magazine and was staring very hard at Kurama.

"Hello," said Kurama, attempting another smile, but he found this one much more hesitant to come. There was something distinctly off-putting about that girl. Ginny turned to the last person yet to introduce himself. Looking at him, Harry thought the boy didn't fit at all in this group of pleasant, interesting people; he was scowling out the window with his arms crossed. He had alarmingly spiky black hair with some sort of white starburst right above his bangs. A white bandanna was wrapped around his forehead. One supposed he was handsome, maybe as handsome as Kurama, but in a distinctly darker, more dangerous sort of way. He hadn't spoken a single word since he'd entered the compartment. It was easy to see that he didn't want to be here.

Regardless, Ginny said to him, "What's your name?" The boy turned his head and sent a death glare at Ginny. She let out a small choking noise and pulled back against the seat. Harry frowned at him, and the boy switched the gaze to Harry.

Harry seized up as his eyes met Hiei's. They were blood-red, and suddenly Harry saw a skull-like face whiter than snow…red, slit-pupil eyes like a cat's…flared nostrils that looked like they had been cut right into the face…

"Harry? Are you alright?" Harry felt something nudging his arm. He quickly looked around at Ginny, who was sitting beside him with a puzzled frown.

"I—I'm fine," Harry replied hurriedly.

"Hiei!" Kurama said in annoyance. Harry felt the red gaze switch from him to Kurama and he almost sagged in relief.

_His eyes,_ Harry thought in horror, _his eyes are just like Voldemort's!_

"I'm sorry," Kurama apologized to Harry and Ginny. "He's really not very social. This is Hiei Jaganshi." Hiei's red eyes raked Harry, Ginny, and Luna. Harry and Ginny averted his eyes, but Luna looked right back at him with open curiosity.

"You're not from around here, are you?" she said in a dreamy voice. She said this while looking at Hiei, but she was obviously addressing all the newcomers.

"No, we're not," Kurama responded. "The four of us are foreign exchange students from Japan. Our…headmaster happens to be good friends with your Dumbledore, and so Dumbledore invited us to Hogwarts for the year."

"Japan!" Ginny exclaimed. "That's really far away."

"Yeah," said Yusuke, "but I gotta say, I ain't gonna miss my old school."

"What about your girlfriend?" Kuwabara said casually. Yusuke punched him lightly in the stomach and said with a grin, "Miss Keiko slapping me at every chance she gets? Yeah right!"

"Tsk tsk," drawled Kuwabara as he wagged a finger at Yusuke, "Keiko won't be very happy when I tell her you said that." Yusuke punched him again, but this time in the cheek, and much harder.

"Shut up!" Yusuke hissed. "If you say a single word to her, I'll rip your empty head off your shoulders!"

"Ha! I'd like to see you try!" Kuwabara barked.

"Careful, sometimes you get what you wish for," Yusuke sneered, raising his fists. Next to him, Harry and Ginny looked at them apprehensively and leaned away from the conflict.

"Don't worry," Kurama chuckled reassuringly. "They're just letting off hot air. However, Yusuke, Kuwabara, now is neither the time nor the place for a fight." Yusuke stretched back in his seat in a dismissive way.

"Yeah whatever. 'Sides, I guess I'll have plenty of time to beat Kuwabara up at school."

"Sorry, Urameshi, but you ain't putting a single finger on me," Kuwabara said casually. Despite their words, Harry knew the "fight" was over. He looked at Kurama admiringly. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a black figure and before he could stop himself, Harry flicked his eyes at Hiei.

The short demon was once again staring out the window in a brooding way. Luna was still staring at him over the rim of her magazine. Harry turned his eyes away and leaned back in his seat. To him, Yusuke and Kuwabara seemed like an interesting pair to be around. Kurama seemed like a male Hermione, only even _more_ polite and in control. Harry could tell he would like all three of them. But Hiei, he decided, he didn't like one bit. Definitely a Slytherin.

By the time Yusuke and Kuwabara's bickering had subsided, the train whistle let out a shrill wail. The train jerked, and then they were off. For a few minutes, everyone simply stared out the window and watched King's Cross station disappear to be replaced by rolling fields and dense forests. Then the compartment door slid open, revealing two strange girls. Ginny stood, said her goodbyes to Harry and the others, and left with the two girls, chatting happily.

Keeping his eyes off Hiei, Harry said to the others, "So, what is Japan like?" and then they were off; Kuwabara and Yusuke eagerly told Harry all about Japan and their school, but of course they made no mention of their "jobs". Harry was perfectly content with just listening to them; their different ways of life were actually quite interesting to hear about. Barely ten minutes after the train left the station, Kurama pulled out one of his new textbooks and was immediately lost in the spells and incantations. Hiei still said nothing, ignoring the conversation and keeping his gaze fixed out the window at the passing countryside. Luna had finally returned to her magazine.

The first hour of travel passed peacefully. But then, as Harry was unfortunately expecting would happen eventually, a less-than-pleasant visit occurred.

The six were sitting in a peaceful silence. The lady with the food trolley had come and gone, and Yusuke, Kuwabara, Kurama, and Harry were enjoying some of the sweets the lady had brought. Luna had politely declined any food and returned to her magazine. Hiei hadn't even acknowledged the lady's existence. Kuwabara and Yusuke had just finished telling Harry about how they beat up punks at school when the compartment door slid open yet again, this time revealing three distasteful visitors. The Tantei, Harry, and Luna all glanced around and saw two huge and very nasty-looking boys flanking a smaller boy like two bodyguards. The latter was very pale, with a pointed, almost pinched face and slicked back white-blond- hair.

"Well well, Potter, have you found some new drooling fans?" the pale boy sneered.

"Shut up and get out, Malfoy," Harry said with venom that surprised the tantei.

"I can't leave yet, Potter. You see, I'm on a rescue mission," the boy called Malfoy said, his eyes glittering maliciously.

Harry was thrown off guard by this strange statement for a moment. "What do you mean?"

"I heard there were some new students on the train, and that they were in _your _car. So I came to save them before you filled their heads with stories of your little 'heroics' and brainwashed them."

Harry stood up furiously and snarled, "I haven't said a single word about any of that! Shove off, Malfoy!"

"I told you, I can't until I save these new kids," Malfoy said lazily. He then turned and addressed Yusuke, who he correctly assumed was the leader: "You shouldn't be sitting with trash like Potty. My name is Draco Malfoy, and these two—" he indicated the two giant kids behind him—"are Crabbe and Goyle." He held out a pale hand formally to Yusuke. Yusuke glared at the proffered hand, then at Malfoy's face. He already hated this smug little kid, and he'd only been present for a minute. Yusuke was about to send off a volley of bad words at Malfoy when Kurama suddenly grasped and shook Malfoy's hand while elbowing Yusuke gently. Out of the corner of his mouth, Kurama murmured to Yusuke, "Let's not go making enemies before we even reach the school, shall we? Let me handle this." He then turned a polite smile to Malfoy, who was looking slightly surprised.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Malfoy," said Kurama lightly, though on the inside he was sneering; he liked Malfoy about as much as Yusuke did. However, the intelligent part of him knew that now was the perfect time to assess Malfoy's character and get good information on him in case he became an enemy later on—which Kurama felt was more than likely. He went on, "My name is Shuichi Minamino, and these are my companions, Yusuke Urameshi, Kazuma Kuwabara, and Hiei Jaganshi." Malfoy let his hand drop and he raised his eyebrows curiously.

"Those names sound Chinese," he said.

"Japanese, actually," Kurama corrected. "We're foreign exchange students from Japan." Malfoy's eyes glittered and Kurama wondered what was going through his mind.

"Well I guess Potter's _infamy_ hasn't reached Japan," Malfoy drawled. "Therefore, it is my duty to inform you that Potter is a conceited attention hog who not only spreads lies about his own accomplishments--"

"Shut up, Malfoy!" Harry was on the verge of shouting, and he kept glancing at the tantei to see if Malfoy's words were having any affect on them. They were all scowling, but Harry couldn't tell at whom.

"--But also hangs out with mudbloods, werewolves, half-giants, and a whole menagerie of deplorable characters," Malfoy went on. "Why don't you four sit with us instead of a bunch of traitors and…" he glanced scathingly at Luna, "…Weirdos."

"You're very impolite, you know," said Luan matter-of-factly. Harry was glaring at Malfoy with such anger, he was trembling. Again, he glanced at the foreign exchange students. Kurama's polite expression had disappeared and was now neutral. Yusuke and Kuwabara were scowling, and Hiei had a disgusted look.

"So what do you say?" Malfoy said airily. "If you come with us, we'll tell you Potter's true story; that he's a trouble-maker and a liar." Harry stood and glowered at Malfoy helplessly. He knew that he had no more power over what decision the four new students made.

Kurama said softly, "We know what Harry has done in the past. We know that he has saved Hogwarts several times before, as well as several fellow students. We know that he is a kind, honest person who would never exaggerate his own heroic acts, and that, in fact, he wish he wasn't famous at all." Malfoy and Harry stared at Kurama's solemn face, dumbfounded. Suddenly there was a quiet thump behind Harry. He looked over his shoulder and immediately slid aside a couple of feet.

Hiei strode past him with an unreadable expression and stood right up to Malfoy. He was more than a head shorter than Malfoy, even with his spiky hair, but he somehow seemed far more intimidating than both Crabbe and Goyle.

"We have no desire to associate ourselves with ningen scum like you," Hiei said in a cold, deep voice that took Harry by surprise; it was the first time Hiei had spoken since Harry had met him.

Malfoy's lip curled at the little demon. "'Scum', are we? You'd better watch your mouth, you little punk." The two bodyguards cracked their knuckles menacingly. Harry expected Hiei to back away from this threat, but no such thing happened. On the contrary, Hiei folded his arms and looked at the three of them contemptuously.

"I have no reason to be afraid of what I say," he sneered. "Your little bodyguards couldn't hit the broad side of a barn if they were standing_ inside_ of it." Crabbe and Goyle let out angry growls and advanced on the little demon, which looked unperturbed. Yusuke and Kuwabara stepped forward to meet Crabbe and Goyle and they raised their fists threateningly. Hiei's hand floated almost casually to his left hip. Harry felt the tension in the small room crackle like electricity.

"Enough!" Kurama barked, standing between the opposing forces. "This is not the place for a fight! Besides…" he turned to Malfoy with a grim expression. "You are outnumbered three to four. This is a battle you cannot win. Be wise, and leave us."

Malfoy glared at him with outright hatred. He looked at the tantei one by one, and his eyes rested a second longer on Hiei.

"You got off lucky this time," Malfoy snarled as he, Crabbe and Goyle backed away. "But don't think we're done here. You four had your chance; now you'd better watch your backs." And he turned and darted out the door, Crabbe and Goyle lumbering behind him. The door slammed shut, and the six were left in silence. Luna was the only one who hadn't moved since Malfoy's entrance. Slowly, one by one, the tantei sat back down again. Hiei retreated to his window seat and resumed his gaze out the window. Harry looked at each of them in turn, his admiration and gratitude raising with each face he saw.

"Wow, standing up to Malfoy like that was really impressive, especially for new students," Harry said to them.

"Eh, he didn't look so tough," Yusuke said dismissively, sticking a finger in his ear. "I've taken on way tougher guys than his cronies."

"Why did you all stand up for me?" Harry asked. Kurama smiled at him.

"Because, we know you're a good person and that Mr. Malfoy was obviously stretching the truth."

"Not completely," Harry admitted hesitantly. "I mean…well…you've heard of the things I've done in the past?" his voice was disappointed.

"Yes, Harry," said Kurama with a smile. "And it was very impressive. But we don't make judgments of a person based on stories of what they did in the past. We judge a person based on what he's like when we've met him."

"And we like you," Yusuke said, grinning and giving Harry the thumbs up. "You got spunk, that's for sure. It looked like you were ready to rip Malfoy's ugly face off, despite those big apes." Kuwabara and Yusuke laughed, and Harry found himself laughing right along with them. When it died down, Harry glanced over at Hiei. The little demon was looking at the darkening sky with a thoughtful expression.

_"We have no desire to associate ourselves with ningen scum like you."_ Harry recalled Hiei's words with a new kind of wonder. Hiei didn't seem to like Harry (then again, he didn't seem to like anyone) but he had blatantly stood up to Malfoy and showed clearly that he would rather have stayed with Harry. This only increased his sense of mystery to Harry. Why would he do such a thing?

He looked at Yusuke, Kurama, and Kuwabara. It wasn't just Hiei—there was something odd about them all, and not just that they were Japanese. Harry had a feeling he was in for a bumpy year.

* * *

Dokkou: This year at Hogwarts is going to have quite a kick-off. You can look forward to the next chapter! Also, I've posted a poll on my profile, asking about what story i should write next. I'd appreciate it if you would stop in briefly and vote.

Next Chapter:_ The Trial of the Sorting Hat_

Summary: The tantei finally arrive at Hogwarts and are going to be sorted into their houses. You can probably already guess where everyone is going, but don't assume that everything is going to go peachy fine. What happens when the Sorting Hat finds out that two of the new students are bloodthirsy demons? Is the tantei's cover going to be blown to pieces before they even become part of Hogwarts?

And a certain half-giant is going to be present at Hogwarts because I need him in the story in the near future.

* * *


	8. The Trial of the Sorting Hat

* * *

_Previously..._

_"Yes, Harry," said Kurama with a smile. "And it was very impressive. But we don't make judgments of a person based on stories of what they did in the past. We judge a person based on what he's like when we've met him."_

_"And we like you," Yusuke said, grinning and giving Harry the thumbs up. "You got spunk, that's for sure. It looked like you were ready to rip Malfoy's ugly face off, despite those big apes." Harry, Kuwabara and Yusuke laughed. When it died down, Harry glanced over at Hiei. The little demon was looking at the darkening sky with a thoughtful expression._

"We have no desire to associate ourselves with ningen scum like you_." Harry recalled Hiei's words with a new kind of wonder. Hiei didn't seem to like Harry (then again, he didn't seem to like anyone) but he had blatantly stood up to Malfoy and showed clearly that he would rather have stayed with Harry. This only increased his sense of mystery to Harry. Why would he do such a thing?_

_He looked at Yusuke, Kurama, and Kuwabara. It wasn't just Hiei—there was something odd about them all, and not just that they were Japanese. Harry had a feeling he was in for a bumpy year._

* * *

Dokkou: Thus the story goes on. Thanks for reviewing, everyone! I appreciate it, as always. I also appreciate all the anonymous reviewers, even though I couldn't thank them myself. And please vote on the poll on my profile about my next Yu Yu Hakusho fanfic.

Now here comes the Sorting Hat, but there's some rejection and nasty surpises in store...

* * *

The Trial of the Sorting Hat 

By the time the Hogwarts Express squealed to a halt, it was very dark outside. As one, the doors on the train opened, and the students steadily filed out, filling the chilly evening air with muffled chatter.

Harry and the tantei leaped from the doorway onto the ground and breathed deeply.

"Ah, fresh air," Yusuke sighed, stretching his arms luxuriously. "How I missed it."

"Firs' years! Fir's years an' exchange students over here!" a gruff voice called out over the crowd.

"That's us," said Kuwabara.

"Hagrid is over there," said Harry. "Come on, I'll take you to him." And he strode off into the crowd. Yusuke, Kurama, Kuwabara and Hiei followed him. A noisy minute later, Harry and the others emerged into a wider space, in the midst of which was an absolutely monstrous man with a wild tangled beard. A lantern the size of a trashcan was swinging from his arm. A group of first years surrounded him, but they were keeping an uneasy distance. Contrary to them, Harry strode right over to the giant. Upon seeing Harry, the man thundered jovially, "Harry! There ya are! Glad ya caught me before I took these first years up to the castle!"

"It's nice to see you too, Hagrid," Harry grinned. Hagrid leaned forward and caught Harry up in a one-arm hug that nearly crushed Harry's ribcage.

"Ack! Hagrid!"

"Sorry, Harry, sorry. It's just that I missed you, you know. You an' Hermione an' Ron. Speakin' of which, where are they?" He released Harry and looked around, as if expecting Ron and Hermione to pop up from behind a rock.

"I don't know," Harry gasped, rubbing his sore chest, "I was sort of hoping you had seen them."

"Nope. I've not seen hide or hair of those two."

"Oh…well, that's okay. They'll be at the feast no doubt. Anyway, I brought you the foreign exchange students."

"Wonderful! Ah…where are they?"

Harry blinked. "They're right behind—" he broke off upon glancing over his shoulder and seeing only empty space. "Well, they _were_ right behind me…oh, there they are." Harry pointed and Hagrid followed his finger.

Four strange-looking students stood about twenty feet away, eyeing Hagrid carefully.

"Come on over! I don't bite!" Hagrid yelled, cheerfully waving them over.

"I'm more concerned about him stepping on me," Yusuke muttered as the four of them cautiously approached. Hiei glared at Hagrid with open hostility.

"Everyone, this is Hagrid, the groundskeeper of Hogwarts," Harry said to the four. "Hagrid, these are the exchange students from Japan. This is Shuichi…er…Shuichi…"

"Minamino," Kurama said lightly. "My name is Shuichi Minamino. And these are my associates, Yusuke Urameshi, Kazuma Kuwabara, and Hiei Jaganshi."

"Pleasure to meet ya!" Hagrid beamed, holding out a giant hand.

"Likewise," Kurama said, accepting his hand.

"You'll love it here at Hogwarts," Hagrid said, shaking Kurama's whole arm and not even seeming to notice. "No better place to learn magic in all of Britain than here at Hogwarts, that's for sure!"

"We certainly hope so," Kurama said, pulling his arm free and massaging it. "We've heard great things about this school and we are trusting that it will live up to its reputation."

"You can count on it," Hagrid grinned. Then he turned to Harry. "You had better get along, Harry or the coaches will leave ya behind. And say hello ter Hermione an' Ron for me, will ya?"

"Sure thing, Hagrid," Harry said. He turned and started running off, waving as he went. "See you, Hagrid! Good luck guys!" he called out to the tantei. Then he disappeared into the crowd.

"Good kid," Hagrid said good-naturedly. "Well, bes' be getting' along. Right then!" he said, raising his voice. "Everyone over here! We're heading for the boats now!" and he stumped off, the light from the lantern bobbing on the faces of the first years that trailed in his wake. Yusuke, Kuwabara, Kurama and Hiei followed at a distance, conversing in low voices.

"He's not human," Hiei said curtly. "At least not fully human."

"True," Yusuke said, "But he doesn't seem like a bad guy."

"He's got a good heart," Kuwabara said firmly. "I can see it in his eyes."

Kurama carefully stepped over a patch of uneven ground. "Indeed. I have a feeling we have nothing to fear from him."

Hagrid lead the mismatched bunch through a series of pathways and down dozens of stairs. At last, the trees around them spread and fell back, giving way to an enormous black lake, lit dimly by the stars and half-moon overhead. At the edge of the lake, a large fleet of small boats floated serenely on the dark surface. Each boat had a lantern hanging from a pole at the stern.

"We're traveling in those things?" Yusuke said, looking doubtfully at the bobbing boats. "Those things don't look like they could hold a—ouch! What?" He irately rubbed the spot where Kuwabara had elbowed him in the ribs. He glared at Kuwabara, who was staring straight ahead in rapt awe. Yusuke grumpily followed his gaze. His mouth fell open.

Perched high on a cliff above the dark lake, an enormous castle loomed, outlined in silver by the light of the moon. Lights glimmered faint and far away on the shadowy stone walls. Turrets and towers pierced the night sky. It was truly a humbling sight to behold. All of the first years stood transfixed in its presence. Hagrid gazed upon it proudly. "Welcome," he boomed, "To Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

* * *

Harry gazed down at the golden plates that stretched along the length of the wooden table. His stomach growled. He moaned and rubbed his stomach, wishing that the first years would show up and get sorted so that the feast would begin. Unfortunately, he had no one to say this to; all of his fellow Gryffindors were sitting a minimum of twenty feet away from him. Every time he glanced in their direction, they would look away and _start_ whispering to each other. So Harry kept his eyes fixed on his plate, bitter thoughts whirling around in his mind. No doubt they were talking about what had happened last summer, when Harry had emerged from the graveyard with Cedric Diggory's dead body claiming that Voldemort had returned. If only they would believe him, then he could…

"Harry! Harry! There you are!" a wonderfully familiar female voice rang out. Harry turned on the bench to see Ron and Hermione hurrying toward him, their prefects' badges glinting on the fronts of their robes from the light of the thousands of candles suspended in midair above the four house tables. Ron and Hermione plopped themselves on the bench on either side of Harry.

"Harry, we're so sorry we're late," Hermione said breathlessly. "That prefect meeting took longer than we thought it would."

"And man was it boring!" Ron said loudly as he wrinkled his nose. "Sheesh! I never would have agreed to be a prefect if I'd known they had _that _many duties!" Harry chuckled sympathetically.

"Ron!" Hermione snapped, "You can't quit being a prefect just because it's hard! Honestly, did you expect it to make life a field of daisies?"

"Something like that, yeah," Ron muttered. Hermione opened her mouth angrily, no doubt to lecture Ron about the responsibilities of a prefect. Ron sensed what was coming and said hurriedly, "So, Harry, how was it on the train without us? Pretty boring, right?"

"Actually," Harry said before Hermione had a chance to start talking, "it wasn't very boring at all. We've got four new exchange students, and they were sitting in my car with me and Luna Lovegood."

"Exchange students!" Hermione squealed, all her irritation washed away by her excitement. "Where are they from? What are they like? What are their names? Do they like to read? What did—"

"Don't forget to breathe, Hermione," Ron laughed. Hermione sucked in a huge breath, her eyes sparkling.

"They're from Japan," Harry said to his friends. "They're all boys, and there's four of them; Yusuke, Kuwabara, Kurama, and Hiei. Yusuke and Kuwabara are really cool, and Kurama seemed really smart and Hiei…well…"

"Smart?" Hermione's ears perked up. "How smart? Did he talk about any book titles?"

"Erm, no…"

"Hey Harry," Ron said, "Did Malfoy show up like he normally does?"

"Yes," Harry breathed, "And you'll never guess what happened."

"What?" Ron and Hermione said together.

"Malfoy showed up and started talking trash about me as usual. Then he invited the exchange students to sit with him. He said he was rescuing them before I could 'Fill their heads with my stories of heroics' and 'brainwashing them'." Hermione and Ron let out noises of disbelief and anger.

"Did they leave with him?" Hermione said in amazement.

"Nope," Harry said smugly. "In fact, they all stood up against Malfoy. Hiei flat-out challenged Crabbe and Goyle to a fight!"

"What?" Hermione squealed. "That was so reckless!"

"Hiei said that Crabbe and Goyle couldn't hit the broad side of a barn if they were standing inside of it."

"How did Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle react?" Hermione said, her eyes widening.

"They were getting ready for a fight, and so were Yusuke and Kuwabara. But then Kurama stepped in and told everyone to calm down, and he told Malfoy to just go away because he was outnumbered."

"So this Kurama _is_ smart then," Hermione said.

Ron said, "What did Malfoy do?"

"He ran away with his tail between his legs!" Harry laughed. "But he tried to warn the new kids that they wouldn't be so lucky next time."

"I'm starting to like these new kids already!" Ron grinned. "They're smart enough not to hang out with gits like Malfoy! I'll bet they'll all be in Gryffindor."

"Well, actually…" Harry trailed off. He had a feeling that not all of the new students were Gryffindor material.

"Malfoy's threat probably isn't empty," Hermione said carefully. "Think about it. Maybe all the new kids together could fend Malfoy off, but if Malfoy got them alone and played dirty like he always does, he could cause them some serious damage! He's also a prefect, after all."

"I guess," Harry said, "But these guys don't seem like the type to be bullied around." He thought back to the almost murderous glint he had seen in his new friends' eyes as they faced Malfoy challengingly.

"That makes me wonder," Hermione said thoughtfully. "If these new students are really as tough as you make them out to be, maybe their old school had even more unpleasant bullies, or maybe they _themselves _were the bullies at their school."

Harry thought for a moment. "I can't see Kurama as a bully. But maybe the others…" he trailed off a second before a loud creaking noise echoed around the Great Hall. Conversations broke off and all eyes turned to the great double doors, through which a group of first years hesitantly filed through, with Hagrid following in their wake. Harry craned his neck, but to his surprise, he saw no sign of his four new friends.

"Where are the exchange students?" Hermione said, scanning the uneasy first-year crowd. "Are they first years?"

"No no, they're our age I think," Harry said distractedly. But there was no doubt about it. The four newcomers weren't there. Hagrid settled in his chair heavily and winked at Harry. Harry gave a half-hearted wave back.

The first years shuffled down the long aisle in the middle of the Great Hall and stood before the raised platform that led to the teacher's table. About twenty feet before the crowd was a stool, upon which sat a faded, patched black hat. Just beyond the hat, at the teacher's table, one seat was empty; Professor McGonagall's.

"I don't get it," Harry frowned as the conversation started up a little bit again. "Where are they?"

Suddenly, the brim of the patched black hat on the stool opened wide and burst into song.

* * *

Professor McGonagall softly closed the door behind her and turned around to face the four students before her.

"Alright, Professor, you called us here to your office for what reason?" Kurama said politely.

"I wish to lay some ground rules to you four," McGonagall said curtly. "First of all, there is to be no brawling with other students." An annoyed sigh from Yusuke and Kuwabara. "Second, the Forbidden Forest is not out-of-bounds for you four, but you are only allowed to venture in one mile and you must be accompanied by a teacher." Hiei's lip curled and Kurama inwardly sighed. He knew that that rule was going to be disregarded, unfortunately by Kurama himself as well. "Third," McGonagall went on, "you four are allowed to wander the grounds after dark, but no student is to know of this priviledge. And fourth, no weapons are to be used in this school, _Mr. Jaganshi_."

Hiei's eyes narrowed.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh I think you do," McGonagall frowned. "I don't know how you got that sword through the security at King's Cross station, but I will not allow it to enter school grounds."

"Technically, it's already in school grounds," Hiei said snidely. McGonagall's eyebrows drew together dangerously.

"Do not presume to test me, Mr. Jaganshi, or I shall give you a week of detention before you have even been Sorted into your respective house."

Hiei opened his mouth—no doubt to challenge McGonagall's authority again—but Kurama elbowed him sharply in the shoulder. Hiei glared at him and closed his mouth. McGonagall held her hand out expectantly.

"The sword, please." Hiei ground his teeth as he hesitantly pulled his sword sheath out of his belt from beneath his black robe. He closed his eyes as if in pain as he held it out and McGonagall took it.

"You had better not get a single scratch on it," Hiei said threateningly. McGonagall pursed his lips and said, "It will be well taken care of. If the need arises—which is not very likely—the sword will be returned to you in full condition."

Hiei snapped his teeth sulkily.

"Fifth, only Professors Dumbledore and Snape, and of course myself, knows of your true identity. On no terms whatsoever are you to reveal your true identities."

"What if we are forced into circumstances which force us to reveal ourselves?" Kurama said. McGonagall closed her eyes.

"Should such an event come up, you will immediately tell either Dumbledore or me of who knows of your secret. They will be dealt with appropriately." She opened her eyes. "Now that you know the ground rules, you four shall go out and wait to be Sorted into your houses. Follow me." She picked up a scroll from her desk and swept off out the door. Yusuke, Kuwabara, Kurama and Hiei reluctantly went after her.

"Great. More stupid people telling me what to do," Yusuke muttered, but quietly enough so that McGonagall didn't hear. "I can already tell that this year is gonna be a blast."

* * *

Harry tapped his finger impatiently on the table. They had all been waiting for nearly five minutes for McGonagall to show up and begin calling out the names of the first years to be Sorted. Harry heard Ron's stomach growl loudly.

"Oh man, I'm so hungry!" Ron groaned. "Where the heck is McGonagall?"

"Here she is!" Hermione said eagerly, pointing. Indeed, McGonagall had just appeared through a shadowy wooden door behind and to the left of the teacher's table. And following her somewhat moodily were Yusuke, Kurama, Kuwabara, and Hiei. Unlike McGonagall, they didn't walk into the light, but stayed in the shadows of the door. Eventually, the students realized McGonagall had finally showed up and the babble of conversation died down. When silence reigned, McGonagall briskly walked up to the Sorting Hat, a roll of parchment clutched in her bony hand.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," she said crisply to the first years. "You shall now be sorted into your appropriate houses. When I call your name, please step forward and sit on the stool." She unrolled the scroll and said, "Aclery, David." A shivering blond boy disengaged himself from the crowd and walked up to the Sorting Hat. McGonagall lifted the hat from its resting place and David Aclery settled nervously on the stool. McGonagall dropped the hat onto his head, which fell down almost to his chin. For nearly thirty seconds, the boy trembled on the chair. Then the brim of the hat split wide and thundered, "Ravenclaw!" The Hall burst into cheers as David put the hat back on the stool and stumbled to the third table on the right.

The rest of the Sorting proceeded accordingly. Nearly an hour later, Zirick, James was sent to the Hufflepuff table.

"Finally!" Ron said joyously. "The feast can begin!"

"Not yet," Hermione corrected. "Dumbledore still has to say his speech, and explain about the new kids."

"Oh come on!" Ron moaned, throwing his knife and fork down and folding his arms. Hermione elbowed him as Dumbledore pushed his chair back and stood, dressed in a resplendent, sparkling green robe. He spread his arms wide and said warmly, "Welcome, first years, to Hogwarts. To our older students, welcome back. Now before we get on to our excellent and rather special feast, I have a couple more matters to address. First of all, we have a new defense against the Dark Arts teacher. May I introduce, Professor Umbridge." There was some scattered applause from the crowd as the short, toad-like woman at the teacher's table smiled widely at the students. "Second," Dumbledore went on as the half-hearted cheering died off, "we have four new students to greet." He waved to the shadowy doorway and for the first time, Yusuke, Hiei, Kurama and Kuwabara stepped forward into the light. A rippled of surprised murmurs swept across the tables; obviously, the tantei's presence had not been previously noted. Now they stood beneath the curious gazes of the hundreds of students and stared almost as curiously back.

"These four have journeyed here all the way from Japan," Dumbledore went on. "Therefore, I expect you all to treat them respectfully and make them feel at home. So let me be the first to say that I am overjoyed to have you four at Hogwarts." Dumbledore clapped enthusiastically and the other teachers and students followed suit. Yusuke and Kuwabara grinned widely and waved at the crowd. Kurama gave a small pleased smile and Hiei let out a disagreeable "Hn" which was lost in the intrigued applause.

When the cheering died down, Professor McGonagall stepped forward with a very small piece of parchment. She lifted the hat, squinted at the paper, and called out, "Kuwabara, Kazuma." Kuwabara cleared his throat and marched to the stern-faced teacher. He settled on the stool and McGonagall dropped the hat on his head.

Kuwabara felt the hat slip past his eyes and he saw nothing but darkness. He waited nervously for something to happen. Then he heard a voice, as soft and smooth as the hat itself, whisper in his ear:

"Ah, a brave and honest heart you've got here, Mr. Kuwabara. You would obviously give your life for a friend, and you never give up on what you believe is right. Truly admirable. Yet such an unethical record…however, there is no doubt that you belong in…GRYFFINDOR!" The hat shouted the last word out to the Hall. The students cheered and Kuwabara headed over to the Gryffindor table after McGonagall removed the hat.

"Kuwabara! Over here!" Harry called out over the cheers. Kuwabara caught sight of him and headed in his direction with a grin. The cheering faltered and died down. Sliding into the seat opposite Harry, he said, "Hey, Harry. Nice to see you again."

"Likewise," Harry smiled but could say nothing more as Hermione hissed at him and pointed at McGonagall.

"Urameshi, Yusuke," McGonagall called out. Yusuke came forward in confident stride and plopped himself on the stool, arms folded. The hat was dropped on his head.

"Another courageous heart," the hat's voice murmured in his ear. "But an even worse record than the last one. Such a life story I see here…Yet I can see you have put yourself in many dangers for your friends and that you would do anything to protect them. Promising qualities that would flourish in…GRYFFINDOR!" Grinning at the applause, Yusuke jerked the hat off and swaggered down to the Gryffindor table where he slid into the seat next to Kuwabara.

McGonagall straightened her glasses. "Jaganshi, Hiei." As Hiei moodily strode toward the hat, Harry elbowed Hermione and Ron.

"He's the one!" Harry hissed. "The one who was giving Malfoy so much lip on the train!"

"Him?" Ron said incredulously as the hat slipped past Hiei's eyes. "He doesn't look big enough to take on Colin Creevy!" Harry was only half listening. He had a bad feeling as to which house Hiei was going to.

Hiei let out a long breath as the hat's voice wormed into his ear:

"Dear Lord above! Never have I seen such a terrible, murderous bloodstained mind in my life! The sheer number of people you've—even Tom Riddle's mind wasn't this—"

_Yeah yeah, _Hiei thought irritably, _I'm so terrible. Now just name the house I belong in so that I can— _Hiei broke off when a horrible pressure suddenly wrapped around his head and squeezed. Hard. He gripped the edges of the stool in pain.

"Why would a demon be here?" the hat muttered, almost to itself. Hiei saw flashes of his memories: fighting Seiryu; plunging his sword into a demon's brain; watching Yukina from the top of a tree…

The hat was flipping through his memories like a file folder. Hiei mentally snarled and pushed the hat's probe back. He was immediately shocked when the hat's control shoved forward and squeezed his conscious mind as well as his physical head. Hiei felt his body start to lurch a little, but he stopped himself before the movement looked like more than a simple shift in position. Hiei knew the hat was in control now, and he hated it. But he had no other choice than to hold perfectly still as the hat scanned his mind.

The hat paused at one memory in particular and Hiei squirmed.

"You're here to protect Harry Potter?" said the hat incredulously.

_Get out of my head and let go of me! _Hiei snapped mentally. The pressure was starting to make him feel dizzy. He was just barely restraining himself from jerking the hat off and incinerating it.

"I can see you mean the students no harm," the hat whispered, "despite your bloody thoughts."

_No, I'm forbidden from harming humans,_ Hiei snarled. _Now let me go!_ The hat was silent for a moment. Suddenly, mercifully, the pressure lessened and disappeared and Hiei couldn't resist letting out a physical sigh of relief.

"SLYTHERIN!" the hat spat over the crowd. There was scattered and somewhat hesitant applause. Hiei pulled the hat off and threw it down on the stool. As he passed by McGonagall, she whispered to him out of the corner of her mouth; "Was the hat squeezing you, Jaganshi?"

"Maybe," Hiei said snippily. He stalked past her and flung himself on the bench at least ten feet from the nearest person. He glared at the golden plate before him. That pathetic rag had dared to threaten him! Hiei was halfway through devising a plot of revenge on the hat when he realized that McGonagall had called out, "Minamino, Shuichi," and that Kurama was walking over to the stool.

Kurama settled comfortably on the seat and felt the hat placed on his head. To his surprise, the hat began squeezing him quite painfully. A low growl floated through his mind.

"Another demon," the voice rumbled. "I suppose that you're here to protect Harry Potter as well?"

_Yes indeed I am,_ Kurama replied to it in his mind. The hat flipped through his memories, grumbling to itself. Kurama endured it patiently.

"Your demon friend was much more hostile to me than you," the hat said to him. "Yet I sense a bloodlust deep within you that is far more frightening than his."

_I apologize for my friend's rudeness_, Kurama said to it. _And I assure you that the bloodlust will not be surfacing anytime soon._

"You're a strange one," the hat grumbled.

_Strange isn't always bad,_ said Kurama, squirming on the stool. The hat was still squeezing quite painfully.

"Do you intend to harm any of the students?" the hat demanded.

_No, absolutely not,_ Kurama thought firmly. The hat sensed his honesty and relieved the pressure on Kurama's head.

"Now then…you're obviously very crafty, a good Slytherin trait…but you are also kind-hearted and brave, so Gryffindor comes to mind…but your intelligence stands out most of all. Therefore you clearly belong in…RAVENCLAW!" A surprisingly large cheer was sent up from the Ravenclaw table, and Harry noticed that it was mostly the girls who were cheering. Smiling, Kurama handed the hat back to McGonagall and elegantly made his way to the Ravenclaw table. Almost immediately, people (mostly girls) started crowding around him and eagerly spoke to him.

Yusuke and Kuwabara snickered.

"Poor guy," Yusuke laughed. "I bet he was hoping he would be getting away from his fanclub when he came here. Turns out he gets an even bigger one!"

"Fanclub?" Ron said, arching his eyebrows.

"Oh yeah," Kuwabara said. "Kurama is super popular with the ladies back in Japan. I mean, it kind of figures. He's smart, he's handsome, he's nice, he's athletic, he's a great fighter, he's—" Yusuke punched him, but it was too late.

"Kurama is a great fighter?" Hermione said, her eyes widening.

"Well, yeah," said Kuwabara hesitantly. "And he's got some, ahem, _killer_ moves."

"Were you all bullies at your old school?" Hermione said suddenly and shrewdly. Yusuke and Kuwabara blinked.

"Well, I wouldn't say bullies," Kuwabara said, putting his hand behind his head. "We were like, uh…peacekeepers! There were a lot of street punks and gangs in our area so we had to put 'em in their places every now and again, you know."

"Oh," Hermione said softly. "Kurama doesn't seem like the type to hurt anyone, even if they were bad."

"Oh Kurama never beat anyone up," Yusuke said. "He was too _proper. _He went to a different school than us."

"Oh that explains it," said Hermione.

"Look!" Ron said, "Dumbledore's getting up! Oh please please please start the feast already! I'm starving!"

Dumbledore straightened his robes as the Hall fell silent. "Now, I'm sure that you have all been somewhat frustrated with the constant stream of delays," he said.

"Hear hear!" Ron grumbled.

"So without further ado, let the feast begin! But there is a little surprise with this feast. In celebration of our foreign students, the cuisine we are going to enjoy tonight will be exclusively oriental! Tuck in!" He sat back down. As he did, the golden plates and dishes filled with food, but it was food that none of the students had ever seen resting on the Hogwarts tables; sushi, ramen, squid, tons of seafood, and dozens of other dishes they had never seen before. Next to each plate, a pair of chopsticks also appeared.

"Woo-hoo! Now this school knows how to eat!" Yusuke yelled joyously. "Ooh! I love this stuff! Where's the Tabasco sauce…" he and Kuwabara immediately took one of everything and piled it all on their plates.

Ron shakily picked up his chopsticks, and accidentally dropped one. He picked it up again and tried to lift a piece of some spicy chicken into his mouth. The chicken dropped back on his plate with a splatter of sauce. Ron let out a moan of frustration.

"Come on! When food finally comes, I can't even put it into my mouth!"

"You're not doing it right," Yusuke said, eyeing Ron as he tried to pick up his chopsticks yet again. He himself was wolfing down a clump of noodles expertly with his own chopsticks.

"Then please, educate me oh all knowing one," Ron said sarcastically.

"Sure thing, Grasshopper. Now, you hold this one like this…no, move your thumb up…yeah that's right…"

Harry and Hermione had already picked up their chopsticks and were wielding them fairly well. They had both been to Chinese restaurants during their time in the Muggle world. Harry chewed on a piece of salmon as he watched Shuichi. The poor guy was nearly swamped with people (now all girls) asking him questions and giggling. Kurama was pointing at the various dishes on the table and obviously explaining about them. Harry chuckled, and looked over at the Slytherin table. A much less jolly sight met his eyes.

Hiei was sitting alone at the end of the table, staring at a bowl of rice. He poked at it moodily with his chopsticks. Suddenly, two rather pretty Slytherin girls got up and walked over to him, egged on by their peers. Restraining giggles, they stopped next to him. Hiei didn't acknowledge their presence. One girl cleared her throat and said something to him, but Harry was too far away to tell what she had said. But judging by her coy posture and batting eyelashes, she was trying to flirt with Hiei. Harry's lip curled in disgust. Vultures.

Apparently, Hiei was thinking the same thing. He turned and said something to the girls in a whisper. Their facial expressions changed like a light switch being turned off. From coy, they went to horrified and disgusted. They quickly spun and hurried back to their friends, who immediately asked them how it had gone. Hiei went back to picking at his rice. Harry's eyebrows went up. His curiosity about the little guy just kept getting bumped up.

He sighed and turned back to his fish, ignoring that Ron was now practically at war with his chopsticks, and that Yusuke seemed to be cheering for both oppositions. This year was definitely going to be an exciting one.

* * *

After dinner, the four tables cleared themselves of food and the students noisily stood up, stretching and yawning.

"Oh man, I ate so much I feel like my belt is going to burst," Kuwabara groaned.

"Better get used to it," Ron said with a sleepy smile.

"So, what happens now?" Yusuke asked Harry and Hermione.

"Follow us, we'll take you to the house dormitory in no time," said Ron.

"No, Ron," Hermione said with a frown. "We're prefects. We have to lead the first years to the dormitory." Ron let out a moan of frustration.

"It's okay," Harry said, "I can take them to the dormitory."

"Oh okay, thanks, Harry. See you later, you two," Hermione waved at Yusuke and Kuwabara as she grabbed Ron and dragged him off toward the huddle of first years.

"Evening, Yusuke, Kuwabara. How did you enjoy the meal?" a gentle voice said behind Harry. They all turned around and saw Kurama, hands folded behind his back, a small smile fixed on his face.

"That was the best!" Yusuke said enthusiastically. "I haven't pigged out like that in months!" Kurama shook his head and laughed. Harry liked his laugh. It was reassuring and it just made you want to smile.

"Let's just hope you don't get out of shape," he chuckled.

"As oppose to you," smirked Kuwabara, putting his hands on his hips. "You're gonna be getting plenty of exercise, what with all these British girls chasing after you."

Kurama laughed again, but this time it was nervous. "Well, yes, I suppose so. But if I could evade the Japanese girls, I can evade the British girls."

"You're pathetic, Kurama," a voice snarled, making Harry jump. "If you don't want a bunch of ningen females drooling after you, you just have to intimidate them a little." Hiei smirked and folded his arms. Harry felt the cheerful bubble inside of him pop.

Kurama looked at Hiei steadily. "I suppose you just tested that theory," he said carefully.

"Indeed. And it worked like a charm."

"Yes, telling two innocent girls that you are going to 'rip their heads off, charbroil them, and serve them on a platter' is certainly going to earn you an unpleasant reputation." Harry's eyes widened. He was shocked by both the fact that Hiei would say something like that, and that Kurama could hear what Hiei and the girls had talked about when he was practically on the other side of the Hall.

"Wow, Hiei, you certainly have a way with the ladies," Yusuke snickered.

"Hn." Hiei's nose wrinkled.

"And apparently he still does," Kurama muttered. He pointed at the Slytherin table. Several girls were still loitering by it, sending bashful glances in the tantei's direction. Hiei's eyes widened in horror.

"What?" he hissed. "Why are they still looking at me that way?"

Kurama shook his head. "You broke the first rule of being hot," he said pityingly. "Never directly turn down a girl."

"Why?"

"Because then they all think that you're playing hard to get, and they'll try even harder to flirt with you."

"No!" Hiei shouted.

"I'm afraid so," Kurama shrugged. "Plus, since you turned those two girls down, now you seem even more mysterious and alluring than before."

"How can anyone be so stupid!?" Hiei spat. "When someone gives you a death threat, you run away from it, not flirt with it!"

"Hey wait a second!" Kuwabara shouted. "This isn't fair! How come everyone likes Hiei? He doesn't even like them back!" He raised his fists at the little demon. "You don't deserve girls drooling after you!" Kuwabara snarled.

"You're welcome to them, certainly," Hiei sneered. "I sure as hell don't have any use for them, besides sharpening my sword on their skulls—"

Kurama cleared his throat loudly. Harry was staring at Hiei in astonishment. Never had he come across someone so—so--

"Listen, we're all tired," Kurama said, raising his hands. "Why don't we all go to bed?"

"Sounds good to me," Yusuke yawned. "So, Harry, lead the way."

"Er, hold on a second," Harry said to him. He was watching Kurama and Hiei.

"What's going on?" Hiei was asking. "Where do we have to go?"

"Well, you're not part of any of our houses," Kurama said hesitantly. "So you go to a different dormitory. I imagine the Slytherin dormitory is somewhere in the dungeons."

"Dormitory?" Hiei blinked. "As in…sleeping with other…people?"

"Well, yes."

Hiei shuddered. "Hell no! What's wrong with this school!?"

"Just go to the dormitory, Hiei." Kurama sighed. "You don't have to sleep there, but just stay there until morning, alright? And…" Kurama leaned in closer and whispered in Hiei's ear: "Don't kill, maim, or otherwise hurt anyone, okay?" Hiei ground his teeth and growled. "You know what will happen if you step out of line," Kurama said warningly. Hiei snarled, spun on his heel and stalked off toward the dungeons. The Slytherin girls trailed hopefully after him out of the Hall.

"I'll take that as a reluctant yes," Kurama said sagely. He blinked and turned to Harry, who was staring at him curiously.

"Can I help you?" Kurama said politely.

"I was just wondering," Harry said, looking around at him, Yusuke, and Kuwabara. "Why do you hang out with Hiei? He seems so…so…"

"Terrible?" Kuwabara offered. "Cruel? Unpleasant? Disagreeable?"

"Yes, all those things."

"Hiei's not such a bad guy once you get used to him," Yusuke said. "He's actually really honorable. He's helped us in a lot of…street fights, and once you earn his respect, he's one of the most loyal guys in the world."

"I can't see Hiei in that light," Harry admitted.

"Someday," Kurama said to Harry, "I have a feeling you are going to see Hiei's true side, and you're going to look at him a completely different way." He brushed some miniscule dust particles off his black robe. "Now if you'll excuse me, several of my roommates have offered to show me around the Ravenclaw dormitory. I'd best not be keeping them waiting any longer. I'll see you three in the morning." With a wave, he departed and headed over to a group of Ravenclaw girls. The crowded around him and pulled him away to the Ravenclaw dormitory, giggling.

"I'm sorry, but Hiei and Kurama are weird," Harry said grimly.

"Yeah." Yusuke said. "Hard to believe they're best friends. They're kind of like Yin and Yang when you think about it…"

"Hiei mentioned a sword," Harry ventured. "What was that about?"

"Oh, Hiei um…takes fencing."

"How did those two meet?"

"Er, I don't know…"

"Does Kurama ever—"

"Look!" Kuwabara said loudly. "No more questions! Can we please just go to bed now?" Harry sighed and led the way out of the Great Hall to the Gryffindor dormitory. His curiosity was only growing with the more answers he got. Yet honestly, he didn't know why he was so curious about Kurama and Hiei. Maybe because they seemed so mysterious. Maybe because there was something not right about them… maybe because they seemed to be part of something bigger than a simple foreign exchange student program… Harry didn't know. All he knew was that he was going to have to tread carefully if he wanted to get some real answers out of the new students.

* * *

Dokkou: Yeeeaaah, this story is coming along great! Also, please vote on the poll I have on my profile, if you have the time.

Next Chapter:_ First Morning_

Summary: The Tantei get settled down into Hogwarts life. After a rude awakening for Yusuke and Kuwabara, they prepare for their first day at Hogwarts. Not to mention a certain pair of trouble-making twins.

* * *


	9. First Morning

_Previously..._

_"Someday," Kurama said to Harry, "I have a feeling you are going to see Hiei's true side, and you're going to look at him a completely different way." He brushed some miniscule dust particles off his black robe. "Now if you'll excuse me, several of my roommates have offered to show me around the Ravenclaw dormitory. I'd best not be keeping them waiting any longer. I'll see you three in the morning." With a wave, he departed, and the Ravenclaw girls crowded around him and led him to the Ravenclaw dormitory, giggling all the way._

_"I'm sorry, but those two are weird," Harry said grimly._

_"Yeah." Yusuke said. "Hard to believe they're best friends. They're kind of like Yin and Yang when you think about it…"_

_"Hiei mentioned a sword," Harry ventured. "What was that about?"_

_"Oh, Hiei um…takes fencing."_

_"How did he and Kurama meet?"_

_"Er, I don't know…"_

_"Does Kurama ever—"_

_"Look!" Kuwabara said loudly. "No more questions! Can we please just go to bed now?" Harry sighed and led the way out of the Great Hall to the Gryffindor dormitory. His curiosity was only growing with the more answers he got. Yet honestly, he didn't know why he was so curious about Kurama and Hiei. Maybe because they seemed so mysterious. Maybe because there was something not right about them… maybe because they seemed to be part of something bigger than a simple foreign exchange student program… Harry didn't know. All he knew was that he was going to have to tread carefully if he wanted to get some real answers out of the new students._

* * *

Dokkou: Thank you, my wonderful reviewers! I appreciate your flood of comments (and compliments) and I especially thank all the anonymous reviewers because I couldn't thank them personally. I know you're all excited for this chapter, so without further ado, read and enjoy!

Special thanks to anonymous reviewers: steaiii and j.

For staying the whole hog with this story, Special Special thanks to: **Miluna** and **iwalkinthelight.**

* * *

First Morning

Golden rays of sunshine shone through the arching windows of the fifth year boys' room. It was early morning, and a beautiful morning. Too bad Gryffindor Tower didn't have early-morning people.

"Yusuke…Yusuke…wake up!" Harry stared down at Yusuke's snoring form. Yusuke snorted and rolled over, jerking his pillow over his head. Harry frowned and poked the detective's leg.

"Wake up!" he said in frustration. Yusuke's only response was a loud snore. Harry let out a sigh of frustration and crossed his arms over his fully dressed chest. "Any luck, guys?" he called loudly over his shoulder.

"No!" Neville said, his eyes wide, "he's still asleep!"

"You'd think he was dead if only he wasn't making so much noise," Ron said in disgust, nudging Kuwabara in the ribs. Kuwabara was sprawled across his bed, a string of drool hanging out the side of his mouth.

"Come on, Kuwabara, wake up already! You're going to miss breakfast!" Ron said angrily, punching Kuwabara in the stomach. A grin spread across Kuwabara's sleeping face.

"Ooh, Yukina, you're awfully fiery tonight," Kuwabara said in a happy, slurred voice. Harry stifled a chuckle as Ron's ears turned red.

"Git," Ron muttered. "Alright, now I'm annoyed. Neville, grab that blanket hanging over the side of the bed."

"Er, okay…" Ron went around and stood next to Neville. He grabbed a corner of the blanket Neville was holding. Harry watched interestedly.

"Ready?" Ron said to Neville.

"Um, well…"

"Pull!" Ron and Neville simultaneously jerked hard on the blanket beneath Kuwabara. Kuwabara rolled off the bed and landed with a painful THUMP on the floor.

"OW!" He shouted.

"Good morning!" Ron said cheerfully as Harry struggled to contain his laughter and Neville looked mollified.

"Nothing good about it!" Kuwabara yelled. "I was right in the middle of a wonderful and very realistic dream!"

"You mean with your dream date, Yukina?" Harry chuckled.

"She's not my dream date! She's my girlfriend!" said Kuwabara in a sappily joyous voice.

"Poor girl," Ron sighed. Kuwabara leaped forward and grabbed Ron in a headlock.

"You take that back!" Kuwabara said heatedly. "For your information, Yukina is the sweetest, most beautiful girl in the whole world, and she's madly in love with me!"

"Uhhhh," Harry said, doubtfully scratching his chin as Ron turned purple in the face.

"You don't believe me?" Kuwabara yelled. "Well I've got proof!" He released Ron (who dropped to the ground with a thud on the floor) and bounded over to his trunk at the foot of his bed. He rummaged in it for a second, muttering to himself. Then he let out a noise of triumph and bounded back to Harry.

"See?" Kuwabara shouted, shoving a heart-shaped picture frame into Harry's face. "Does that look like a girl who isn't enjoying my presence tremendously?" Harry pulled back and adjusted his glasses.

Kuwabara was grinning at him from out of the frame. Next to him, at least two feet shorter, was a very beautiful girl. She had long, aqua-green hair that was pulled back in a red clip. She was wearing a long blue-green kimono, and her face looked very gentle and sweet. A small, loving smile completed her charming appearance.

Harry blinked. Wait…red eyes? They looked familiar…but Harry couldn't tell why.

Kuwabara pulled the picture frame back and hugged it to his chest, grinning like a love-struck idiot. Which, come to think of it, he was.

"My sweet little Yukina," he sighed. "I know you're waiting for me back home. Fear not, my love, I shall return to you in a blaze of triumph!" He struck a heroic pose. The effect was taken away by Kuwabara's white tank-top and mint-green, heart-covered boxers. Harry's eye twitched. A snort sounded from behind him.

Kuwabara turned and glared ferociously at Harry.

"What was that?" Kuwabara snapped. Harry took a step back, hands raised defensively.

"It wasn't me!"

"No," Ron grunted. "It was this git." He poked Yusuke, who was stilled sprawled on his bed, fast asleep. "We've been trying to wake him up for ten minutes, but he won't budge!"

"Ah you just have to use the right method," Kuwabara said casually. He strode over to Yusuke and bent over him. Harry, Ron and Neville watched tensely. Kuwabara took a deep breath and shouted right in Yusuke's ear, "OH MY GOD! HOW DID YOU GET HERE, TOGURO!?"

Yusuke screamed and jumped out of his bed.

_"Where is he? Where is he_?" Yusuke shouted, attempting to get into a fighting pose. However, one should never attempt this when one is still half-asleep. Yusuke ended up tripping backwards over his trunk and cracking his head against the wall.

"Agh! What the hell?!" Yusuke yelled. "Where's Toguro? What's going on?!"

"Toguro?" Kuwabara said vaguely, sticking a finger in his ear. "You must have had a bad dream, Urameshi. Toguro ain't here." Yusuke stared at Kuwabara, his eyes wide. Then his face turned a dangerous red color. Harry could almost imagine steam coming out of his ears.

"KUWABARA!!"

"I think we should leave," Harry muttered. He grabbed Neville and Ron's arms and shot out the door.

Not a moment too soon. As the door closed behind him, the three heard a thump and muffled shouting.

"What's going on?!" Neville cried fearfully. "Shouldn't we stop them?"

"Nah," Ron said. "They'll work it out eventually." Something very heavy bashed against the door. Ron raised his voice. "I'm starving! Anyone in the mood for pancakes?"

* * *

Harry and Ron found Hermione sitting in the common room, quietly reading a book in the light of the morning sun. Crookshanks was purring on her lap. Harry and Ron called out a greeting to her and the three of them headed out of Gryffindor Tower down to the Great Hall.

As they rounded the corner of the entrance hall, they were met by a wall of low noise. Many people were already in the Great Hall enjoying breakfast, talking with friends, and going over their new schedules. Harry, Ron and Hermione noticed that there was a large clump of girls at the Ravenclaw table. As the three sat down at the Gryffindor table, the clump parted, and Kurama strode out of it and made his way toward Harry and the others, sending apologetic smiles and waves over his shoulder. The girls giggled and sighed and waved back.

"Good morning Harry, Ron, Hermione," Kurama said politely to them as he stopped beside their table.

"Morning, Kurama," Harry said, heaping bacon and eggs onto his plate. "How was your first night here at Hogwarts?"

"Enjoyable," Kurama responded. "My generous roommates made sure that I passed the night in extreme comfort."

"How come you're over here?" Ron asked Kurama.

"Trying to get a break from you 'generous roommates'?" Hermione chuckled. Kurama laughed nervously and scratched his head. Hermione scooted over on the bench. "You can sit with us for a while if you'd like," she said.

"Thank you," Kurama said with a brilliant smile. He gracefully flowed into the seat next to Hermione, across from Harry and Ron.

The grins on the Ravenclaw girls faded significantly.

"Maybe it's not a good idea for you to sit over here too long," Ron said to Kurama. The fox demon looked at him in alarm.

"Why not?"

"Well there's a lot of inter-house competition and it's really out-of-place to have a Ravenclaw sit at the Gryffindor table…" Hermione kicked Ron under the table. He flinched. Kurama's face fell slightly.

"Well…I could certainly leave if you're not comfortable with my presence."

"No no," Hermione said quickly. "he was just rambling. You don't have to go if you don't want to." Kurama smiled at Hermione.

"Thank you," he said with such sincerity that Hermione blushed and Ron frowned. Kurama looked around the Hall and said, "So where are Yusuke and Kuwabara?"

"I think they're still in Gryffindor Tower," Ron said, pouring himself some coffee.

"Oh dear," Kurama said, "They're going to be late on their first day!...oh wait…here they come now." He pointed past Harry and Ron. They turned around and saw Yusuke and Kuwabara sleepily heading toward them. Both of them had several bruises and their Hogwarts robes were ruffled.

"Hey, guys," Harry said as Yusuke sat next to Kurama and Kuwabara sat next to Ron. "Did you work out your issues?"

"Mostly," Yusuke grunted, grabbing a bagel and shoving it into his mouth. He blinked and glanced at Kurama. "Hey there, Fox Boy, what are you doing over here?"

Kurama smiled. "Just visiting. How did you both sleep?"

"Like a log," Yusuke replied. "Until Kuwabara shouted 'Toguro' in my ear."

Kurama's smile slid off to be replaced by a frown. "Kuwabara, that was a little harsh, don't you think?"

"He wouldn't wake up any other way!" Kuwabara argued, but his voice was slightly guilty.

"Who is Toguro?" Harry asked, looking around at Yusuke, Kuwabara and Kurama's subdued faces.

Kurama stirred a cup of tea with a spoon. He said softly, "Toguro was…a gangster of sorts. He was very powerful and very cruel. Eventually he heard of Yusuke's reputation as a fighter, and he wanted to test his power against Yusuke. It was rather like a game to him."

"That's terrible!" Hermione cried, putting her hands over her mouth.

"Yeah, he tried to snuff me out a few times," Yusuke frowned, twirling a doughnut between his fingers. "Finally he forced us to fight in a tournament and we managed to beat him and his team, in the end. That was actually just a few months ago."

"Who is 'we'?" Harry asked.

"Me, Kurama, Kuwabara, and Hiei," Yusuke replied.

"You actually fought in a tournament?" Hermione gasped to Kurama.

Kurama rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Well, yes, I did participate…"

"And you kicked major ass!" Yusuke crowed, throwing his arm around Kurama's shoulders. "Especially in that fight against Karasu!"

"Yes, well… let's not discuss that now," Kurama said awkwardly, lifting Yusuke's arm off his shoulders.

Kuwabara paused in the midst of eating a piece of toast and looked around. "Hey where's Shrimpy? I don't see him anywhere."

"Hiei is over at the Slytherin table," Kurama said. He turned around and pointed. "There." The others looked around.

Hiei was sitting on the very edge of the Slytherin table. His fellow housemates were sitting far away from him, muttering and casting him looks of dislike.

"Whoa, what are _those_ looks for?" Ron said, raising an eyebrow.

"Let's find out," Kurama said simply. He turned in his seat and called out loudly, "Hiei!" Harry very much doubted Hiei could have heard Kurama from all the way across the hall. But to his surprise, Hiei's head shot up and he looked straight at Kurama. Kurama beckoned him over. Hiei stood up and moodily made his way over to Yusuke and the others. The eyes of the Slytherins followed him closely.

Hiei slid into the seat beside Kurama.

"What?" he said sulkily.

"You looked unhappy over there," Kurama said. "What's bothering you?"

Hiei gave him a withering look. "You know full well what is bothering me," he growled. "Therefore I'm not going to waste my breath on an explanation." Harry's dislike for Hiei all surged back at once.

"That's too bad," Kurama said mildly. "I was going to ask you how your night was."

"Oh I made lots of new friends," Hiei said sarcastically. "Especially with that piece of slime, Malfoy."

"You don't like Malfoy?" Ron said in slight surprise. Hiei's lip curled.

"Of course not. He's an arrogant, conceited, cowardly baka with the brains of a gnat." Ron held back a snort of laughter and Harry blinked in surprise; he had expected Hiei and Malfoy to become allies immediately. For once, he was glad he was wrong.

At that moment, there was a slight disturbance in the entrance hall. A group of girls were crowded around something, giggling and sighing rapturously. Suddenly a brown blur shot out from the crowd and streaked for the Gryffindor table. It took a flying leap and landed, bristling, into Hiei's arms.

"Sandstorm," he said, arching and eyebrow, "I was wondering where you've been." Sandstorm climbed up and wound around Hiei's neck. Her tails were flailing in agitation.

"Whoa!" Ron said, his eyes widening, "What the heck is that?"

"That's a—it can't be," Hermione breathed in astonishment. "Is that a lingokeyen?!"

"Yes," Hiei said in a bored voice as he stroked Sandstorm's back.

"But those are really rare!" Hermione gasped, "Where on earth did you get?..."

"Um, excuse me, is that your cat?" a coy, high-pitched voice said. Hiei and the others looked around to see the group of girls now hovering a few feet away. Sandstorm's fur stood on end and she bared her teeth at the girls.

"Yes, she is mine," Hiei said curtly. The girls started giggling.

"She's really cute," a blond girl said shyly.

"That's a matter of opinion," Hiei grunted. The girl blinked. "Now," Hiei went on with the beginnings of a snarl, "I would appreciate it if you would all shove off. I have better things to do than converse with a bunch of shallow ningen girls." The group's looks of happiness and coyness turned to outrage.

"You're horrible!" the blond cried out.

A truly terrifying look crossed Hiei's face. It was like a wolverine who was about to sink its teeth into a juicy deer. The girls all took a step back.

"You have no idea," Hiei hissed. "Now go away if you know what's good for you." The girls let out squeals of fear and ran away. Sandstorm purred and rubbed against Hiei's cheek.

"You're welcome," Hiei murmured to her.

"That was terribly rude!" Hermione said angrily to the fire demon.

"Like I care," Hiei sniffed. "Ningen emotions do not concern me. Now if you all have nothing actually _important_ to say, I'm leaving." And with that, he haughtily stood up and stormed out of the Great Hall, Sandstorm swaying on his shoulder.

"Wow," Ron breathed out, "that was…"

"Abhorrent!" Hermione burst out angrily. "His behavior was nothing short of beastly! I can't believe how he treated those girls!"

"He's a Slytherin if I ever saw one," Ron agreed.

"He's almost worse than Malfoy!" Harry said in disgust.

"Why on earth are you friends with him?" Hermione cried to Yusuke, Kuwabara and Kurama. Her voice was almost accusing.

"Hiei's not usually _that_ nasty," Yusuke frowned as he poured milk into a bowl of cereal. "He must be really ticked off for some reason…"

"That was no excuse for his behavior!" Hermione hissed at Yusuke, who was abruptly reminded of Keiko.

"Hiei is really not such a bad person," Kurama said mildly. "He's actually very loyal, and he'll help any friend in distress. It's just that his friendship and respect are very difficult to gain…"

"With friends like that, who needs enemies?" Ron muttered.

"What was that word Hiei used before?" Hermione asked. "He called those girls, 'ningens'." She looked at Kurama quizzically.

"Er, ah, well…" Kurama said vaguely. "Hey, is that a ghost?" he pointed down the table. His companions' heads swiveled around to see a pearly-white ghost dressed in a handsome medieval costume.

"Whoa!" Yusuke exclaimed. "What the heck?!"

"He's a good ghost!" Harry said quickly. "His name is Sir Nicholas. Want to meet him?"

"Certainly," Kurama said, tilting his head at the translucent figure.

"Oy!" Ron hollered, "Nearly Headless Nick! Over here!" the ghost looked up and floated over to Ron and the others.

"I would appreciate it," the ghost said stiffly, "if you would call me Sir Mimsy--"

"Yeah, yeah," Ron cut through. "There are some new students who want to meet you."

"You don't say!" Nick said delightedly, looking at Kurama, Yusuke and Kuwabara. "Hello, children! My name is Sir Mimsy Porpington—"

"And all that stuff," Ron interrupted again. "Nick, this is Yusuke, Kuwabara, and Kurama. They're transfer students from Japan."

"Japan! How marvelous!" Nick exclaimed.

"You're really a ghost?" Yusuke said shrewdly. Sir Nick drew himself up proudly.

"Indeed I am."

"Can you interact at all with the physical world?"

"Er, well, no…no I cannot."

"That's weird," Yusuke said blankly as he rubbed his chin. "All the ghosts I've ever met can at least make stuff float and—" Kurama nudged him hard in the ribs, but it was too late.

"You have ghosts in Japan?" Hermione said curiously.

"Oh yes indeed," Kurama said, recovering quickly. "But our spirits are much more malevolent. They usually only stay in this world to haunt someone."

"Those sorts of ghosts are quite a bunch of over-dramatic ghouls," Nick said stiffly. "They're so very depressing. Have you ever invited one to a party? I did once…it was dreadful…the fellow seemed determined to haunt something…he ended up haunting the chips and dip…"

"Harry! There you are!" a male voice called out. "Been looking for you all over, mate!" Harry, Nick and the others looked around to see two identical boys with flaming red hair come up to them. There was no doubt they were related to Ron. They looked about seventeen years old.

"Hey, Kuwabara!" Yusuke grinned. "I'm seeing double!" The twins laughed and sat across from Ron, Harry and Kuwabara.

"I'm Fred."

"I'm George."

"We're twins."

"In case you haven't noticed."

"Who are you?" They said together, holding out their hands. Kuwabara shook George's and Yusuke shook Fred's. A second later, Yusuke and Kuwabara yelped and clutched their hands, which were swelling and turning purple.

"Beehive buzzers!" The twins grinned, showing them two hexagonal pieces of yellow rubber on their palms.

"Ow! What was that for?!" Yusuke said angrily.

"Just giving you the proper Weasley welcome!" Fred smirked.

"So…welcome to Hogwarts!" George crowed.

"Wanna know how we welcome people in Japan?" Yusuke snarled, raising his fist threateningly.

"Whoa, easy there, mate!" said Fred, holding up his hands. "We were just joking with you. Can't help it."

"That was hardly a joke," said Hermione, glaring at the twins.

"Sure it was! Don't worry, the effects of the beehive buzzers wear off after a while. See?" George pointed to Kuwabara's hand, which was slowly turning back to its normal color.

"I hope you won't be insulted if I refuse to shake your hands," Kurama said amiably to Fred and George. The twins turned and looked at him.

"Say, aren't you a Ravenclaw?" said George shrewdly.

"Yes. Is that a problem?" Kurama looked at them with polite curiosity.

"Well, no," said Fred, "but it's a little unusual for a Ravenclaw to be over at the Gryffindor table."

"Oh come now," said Kurama mildly. "I knew these five—" he waved his hand at Harry, Hermione, Yusuke and Kuwabara—"long before I was sorted into Ravenclaw. Surely I can still be friends with them even though I'm in a different house? Or is that prohibited at Hogwarts?"

"No, no, it's not against the rules or anything," said George. "It's just, well…uncommon."

"I think it's a shame that there is so much inter-house dislike," Kurama mused. Hermione looked at him with a new admiration. Those had been her thoughts exactly from her very first year at Hogwarts.

A shadow suddenly passed overhead, and everyone looked up to see a huge flock of owls come streaming into the Great Hall and dropping down to various students.

"Whoa! What's going on?" Yusuke cried.

"Mail," Harry said casually. Hermione glanced at the large clock that hung on the wall behind the teacher's table.

"We had better hurry and finish breakfast," she said tersely, "or we'll be late on our very first day."

* * *

Dokkou: Phew! Very eventful chapter, eh? You guys are going to like the next chapter even more. The first class begins!

Next chapter: _First Classes: History of Magic_

Summary: The day starts with History of Magic class, Ravenclaws with Gryffindors. Oh joy. But what do we have here...Hermione has got a new rival for the position of 'Perfect Student'... Also, plants and fire demons DO NOT mix! _AAAAAHHHH_!! _THORNS!! RUN, DEMON, RUN!!_

* * *


	10. First Classes

_

* * *

_

Previously…

"_I think it's a shame that there is so much inter-house dislike," Kurama mused. Hermione looked at him with a new admiration. Those had been her thoughts exactly from her very first year at Hogwarts._

_A shadow suddenly passed overhead, and everyone looked up to see a huge flock of owls come streaming into the Great Hall and dropping down to various students._

"_Whoa! What's going on?" Yusuke cried._

"_Mail," Harry said casually. Hermione glanced at the large clock that hung on the wall behind the teacher's table._

"_We had better hurry and finish breakfast," she said tersely, "or we'll be late on our very first day."_

Dokkou: Chapter 10. This one is sort of short, but i was running low on ideas. Regardless, I hope you enjoy reading it, even though I personally don't think it's very good...

* * *

First Classes

The first class of the day for the Gryffindors was double History of Magic. Harry and Ron moaned about it the whole way to Professor Binns's classroom.

"Oh do stop complaining!" Hermione said irritably. "History of Magic isn't that bad if you bothered to pay attention."

"And why would we do that?" Ron snorted. "Sorry, Hermione, but we don't want to be bored into early graves." Hermione let out a noise of disgust and stalked into Professor Binns's classroom. She specifically sat all the way at the front of the room, away from Harry and Ron. The door cracked open again, this time admitting a group of Ravenclaws and a few stray Gryffindors. Hermione didn't even look up as she set parchment and quills on her desk, ready to take notes.

She heard a scraping noise as the desk next to her was occupied. She blinked and looked up.

Kurama looked back at her with a smile and a genial wave. Hermione waved back, blushing slightly. She looked away, and noticed that she and Kurama were the only ones sitting in the front row. Yusuke and Kuwabara were both sitting over by Ron and Harry.

A ghost suddenly floated through the blackboard.

"Alright, class, open your books to page 180," Professor Binns said in a voice like a vacuum cleaner. "We will be reading about and taking notes on the Great Mountain Imp Wars. Now, the wars began in 1546 in an isolated mountain range off the coast of…" his voice was already having its expected effect. Barely five minutes later, all around the room, students' heads were dropping on the desks and eyes were closing. Harry and Ron were already doodling on scraps of parchment, and Yusuke and Kuwabara were on the verge of falling asleep.

Hermione gritted her teeth and kept her eyes glued to professor Binns's pearly, translucent form. Every now and again, she bent over to scribble some notes on her parchment.

Once, she finished writing and set her quill down. But the scratching noise of a busy quill kept going. Hermione blinked and looked around.

In the desk beside her, Kurama was intently writing notes on his parchment. He had already filled half the paper. He looked up at Professor Binns with rapt focus, drinking in every single one of the ghost's words. Hermione was so stunned that she tuned Professor Binns out for almost a full minute before jerking back to reality and quickly resuming her focus on the teacher. She carefully kept her eyes on either her paper or the ghost, but she was unable to tune out the persistent scratching of the quill beside her. Once, she stole a peek over at Kurama's paper and her face grew hot.

He had already finished a whole page of notes! And he was starting on the second!

_Incredible_, Hermione thought, writing a sentence about Duvriat the Deadly. _He's actually still awake—and taking notes, no less! I've never seen anyone besides myself… _Her thoughts were interrupted when a tiny ball of parchment landed right in the middle of her paper. Hermione blinked and glanced at Kurama. He was staring at Professor Binns with rapt interest. Hermione quietly unfolded the ball and found several sentences of neat, small, cursive writing which read:

_I had no idea that imps had an uprising in the 1500s. It's quite fascinating._

He was trying to start a conversation with her. If it had been at any other time, Hermione would have been overjoyed to be talking with him. But they were in the middle of class right now. Hermione frowned and scribbled on the back of the note:

_It is, so you should pay attention instead of wasting time writing notes. _

Hermione crumpled the paper up and casually tossed it on Kurama's desk. He subtly swept it beneath his desk and unfolded it. His eyes scanned over it and he quickly wrote something on it. Hermione felt her heart give an extra large beat. He was writing back! What on earth was he going to say?...

_Plip_. The crumpled ball bounced on Hermione's desk. She grabbed it and unfolded it:

_Ha ha, I suppose you're right. But I can send notes and take notes simultaneously, so I thought I could hold a pleasant conversation with you._

Hermione sniffed and wrote:

_That sounds quite impossible, taking notes and sending notes at the same time. Even so…you're the first person I've seen beside myself actually taking notes in this class._

She tossed it back. Barely ten seconds later, the crumpled ball sailed right back at her.

_That's really too bad. I imagine this class could be much more interesting if Professor Binns just put a bit more effort into it. And yes, I can take and send notes at the same time._

Hermione scowled and wrote back:

_I don't believe you._

Kurama's reply:

_Is that because you yourself can't take and send notes at the same time?_

The delicate cursive words brought a horrible realization to Hermione: in the five minutes they had been passing notes, Hermione hadn't been paying a single ounce of attention. Hermione let out a squeak, sent a quick glare at Kurama, and hurriedly struggled to catch up on Professor Binns's words. About thirty seconds later, a small paper ball landed on her desk. She irritably ripped it open and read:

_Relax, Hermione, I've copied all the notes. I can give them to you at the end of class._

_You cannot have copied them all!_ Hermione wrote angrily.

_Don't believe me? Fine. Here._ Four neatly folded notes landed on Hermione's desk. She unfolded them and scanned their content in disbelief. They were pure notes on the Great Mountain Imp Wars in neat, clear cursive. Hermione glanced at Kurama. The red-head was busily writing down what Professor Binns was saying. Hermione stiffly tossed a note back.

_I appreciate you letting me borrow them. I'll give them back A.S.A.P._

_Very well._

Hermione didn't reply, and Kurama didn't press her. She was feeling slightly numb. Not only was there someone who bothered to listen to what Professor Binns said, but he could take notes even faster than her! Was he a genius? Did the other exchange students also possess incredible intellect and intuition?

A spit bubble from Yusuke's wide-open mouth suddenly popped, but the black-haired dimwit just slept on and drooled copiously on his blank parchment.

_No, _Hermione mused as drool dripped onto the floor_, I'm pretty sure that Kurama is just special. This is going to be interesting._

* * *

History of Magic ended, much to Yusuke, Kuwabara, Harry and Ron's relief.

"Goodbye, Hermione," Kurama said once they were outside the classroom. "Feel free to return the notes whenever you need to."

"Thank—thank you, Kurama," Hermione said. Kurama gave her a short wave and walked away, his long red hair flowing out behind him. Hermione waved back, a small smile crossing her face. Kurama's notes on the Great Mountain Imp Wars were clutched to her chest.

As soon as Kurama was out of earshot, Ron marched up to Hermione and demanded, "Were you passing notes in class?"

"That's none of your business," Hermione said curtly as she strode off to the dungeons, a.k.a. Potions class. Ron angrily followed a foot behind. Harry sighed and beckoned for Yusuke and Kuwabara to follow. The five of them walked off together to their next class.

Ron and Hermione bickered all the way to Potions class. When they rounded the final corner, Harry moaned: the Slytherins were already assembled by Snape's classroom. As he and the others entered the room, Harry looked around for one person in particular. He, Ron and Hermione sat in the very back row.

_He should be here,_ Harry thought with a frown. _So where…_ There was a sudden intake of breath beside him and an elbow dug into Harry's arm. He looked around and his stomach constricted.

Hiei was sitting barely four feet away, staring straight ahead at the blackboard. He hadn't stirred as Harry, Ron and Hermione obliviously sat next to him. They hadn't noticed Hiei because 1, he was very small and thus easily overlooked, and 2, he was sitting in the shadow of a large cabinet near the end of the table.

Harry turned his eyes away and let his breath out. As long as he didn't draw attention to himself, he wouldn't feel too awkward…

"Hiei! There you are!" Yusuke exclaimed brashly as he sat next to Hiei. Kuwabara sat next to Yusuke. Hiei turned his steely red gaze to Yusuke.

"What are you so disgustingly cheerful about?" Hiei grunted. Yusuke stretched his arms behind his head.

"Oh I just had a great little nap in History of Magic class," Yusuke yawned. "What were you doing?"

Harry blinked and looked at the table. "Herbology."

"Did you have fun?"

Hiei's eye twitched as he thought back…

* * *

Flashback

"Welcome to Herbology," a short, dumpy-looking witch said the class of Slytherins and Hufflepuffs. "We will be working in greenhouse three today so follow me…" she led the class to a large greenhouse. Hiei walked at the very back of the group, all alone. Occasionally, people glanced back at him, but one glare from him had their heads snapping forward.

They entered a greenhouse. A long table with dozens of potted flowers sat in the middle of the room.

"Now, I want you all to partner up," Professor Sprout said. Immediately, everyone moved away from Hiei. A few minutes later, everyone had a partner except…

"Jaganshi!" Professor Sprout barked. "Where is your partner?"

"I don't have one," Hiei drawled. "I guess I'll have to work alone."

"Absolutely not," said Professor Sprout curtly. "This assignment requires groups of at least two people. Jaganshi, pair up with Mr. Malfoy and Ms. Parkinson." Hiei scowled, but forced himself to stand over by Malfoy and that girl who looked like a pug, Pansy Parkinson. Malfoy and Pansy looked back at Hiei with equal distaste.

"Now, your assignment is to take the seeds from the pods of these Scattershots," Professor Sprout announced. "But be warned: the seed pods also act like Venus fly traps, and they are sensitive to heat, so don't keep your hands in the pods for too long." Hiei mentally groaned as he gazed at the flower before him. The Scattershot flower looked like a white lily with red streaks down the middle of the petals. Right in the center of the petals were about three small, yellow, round seeds. The safe retrieval of the seeds was the point of the assignment. The flower looked perfectly innocent, but all too often, the innocent-looking things were the most dangerous. Hiei wished that Kurama was here.

"Begin!" Professor Sprout barked. Hiei looked at the flower. Then he glanced at Malfoy and Pansy.

"Well?" he said, arching an eyebrow. Malfoy folded his arms in disgust.

"I'm not going near that thing," he sneered. Hiei gave a sigh of irritation. If only he could use his super speed—he would have the seeds in a split second. But he knew it would look far too suspicious. Guess he was doing this the old-fashioned way.

Hiei carefully extended his hand to the seed pod. The flower suddenly let out a hiss, and Hiei jerked his hand back. Malfoy and Pansy snickered, causing Hiei to scowl.

_Alright. I guess we're doing this the hard way. _Hiei clenched his fist. Perhaps if he subtly set the flower petals in fire… he raised his hand toward the plant, a tiny ball of heat gathering in his palm. The Scattershot straightened and stiffened.

Carefully…

Hiei's hand was five inches from the closest petal. Malfoy and Pansy watched intently. The flower was an inch away when it happened: the Scattershot drew back with a loud screech. The petals pulled back, exposing sharp grey barbs. A second later, all the other Scattershots in the room swung around and bared their barbs at Hiei. Pansy and Malfoy shrieked and dove away. Hiei froze where he stood and stared at the flower uneasily.

"Oh dear," Professor Sprout said shakily. "Ah, Mr. Jaganshi, no sudden movements… just back away slowly…" Hiei took a deep breath and inched one foot back.

At that moment, the Scattershots fired the barbs at Hiei like bullets from a gun. Hiei's instincts snapped to life. He bent, rolled, flipped and cart wheeled out of the way of the spines. His back pressed up against the glass wall of the greenhouse just as the thorns stopped shooting. Hiei was in a very awkward position; both his arms and one leg were raised up high, centimeters from the sharp barbs buried in the wall. His head was cocked to the side; an inch away were three thorns piercing the wall. He slowly let his held breath out. It was silent enough in the greenhouse one could hear a pin drop.

"Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear," Professor Sprout blustered, hurrying through the students. "Hiei, are you alright?" Hiei peeled himself off the wall and lowered his arms and leg. A sharp pain lanced through his chest. He looked down and saw two thorn heads poking through his black robe.

"I'm fine," Hiei mumbled, jerking the thorns out.

"Are you sure you don't need to go to the hospital wing?" said Professor Sprout hesitantly.

"Positive," Hiei said. He strode toward the now barb-less Scattershot flower as Professor Sprout said, "Those were quite some acrobatics you did just now... how did you learn that?"

"A lot of practice," the demon replied dismissively. He stared down at the Scattershot. It hissed weakly. Hiei ignored it, shot his hand inside the pod and pulled it out a second before it snapped shut. He came toward Professor Sprout and dropped three yellow seeds into her hand.

"Am I done now?" Hiei said grumpily to the looks of amazement that beat down on him from very side.

* * *

"Oh, Herbology was alright," said Hiei vaguely. "It would have gone a lot better if Kurama had been there…"

"Alright, class, settle down," a familiar cold voice rang out. The class fell silent as Snape strode up the middle aisle to the front of the room, his black robe billowing out behind him.

"Let's not waste time," Snape sneered. "Do not assume that we will be concocting some primitive potion just because this is your first day back. Today you will be working on a potion called the Elixir of Sepia. It is a poison that, when drunk, attacks the nervous system of its victim. The poison causes the victim to writhe and twitch until they die from exhaustion. Not a potion for the faint of heart." His black eyes rested on Neville as he said this. Neville gulped. "Now get to work," Snape said coldly. "Instructions are on the board." And with that, he swept into his office.

To Harry's relief, there was absolutely no contact between himself and Hiei. In fact, Hiei completely ignored all of them, including the puzzling stares he received. These stares were not ones of dislike, like the ones Hiei had gotten that morning, more like awestruck—at least from the Slytherins. Harry wondered why, but thought it best not to ask.

When the bell rang and class ended, Harry and the others gathered their possessions together, talking and preparing for their next class. Harry straightened in time to see Hiei disappear out the door with a gentle whisper of his black robe. Harry frowned slightly and glanced at his friends. Ron, Hermione, Yusuke and Kuwabara were all chatting together. Harry shouldered his bag and hurried out the door. He looked around and immediately spotted Hiei heading down the hallway. Harry took a deep breath and quickened his pace. The sooner he confronted these emotions, the sooner he would be at ease. When Harry was about 10 feet behind Hiei, he opened his mouth but before he could say a word Hiei spun around and said irritably, "What do you want?"

Harry froze, his nervousness flowing back.

"Well, I—I'm going in this direction too…I'm going to Divination…Er, where are you going?"

"History of Magic," Hiei replied, allowing Harry to hesitantly draw up next to him.

"Oh…that class is really boring," Harry said randomly.

"Like all the classes I've had so far," Hiei grunted. He turned and continued down the hallway. After a moment, Harry trailed after him. He swallowed then said, "Is there something bugging you?" Hiei glanced at him with a frown. Harry went on nervously, "Because, well, you seem really angry… is Malfoy causing you trouble? Or…um…" he trailed off, feeling too uncomfortable to continue.

Hiei sighed and said softly, "No, Malfoy isn't causing me too much trouble…even if he was, I can handle him. I'm angry because I have to be here." He waved at the castle around them as they walked down the corridor. "I don't belong here with all these hum—people. There are better things I could be doing."

"Better than learning magic?" Harry said in wonder.

Hiei snorted. "Of course. What good is being able to pull a rabbit out of a hat when you're facing a deadly enemy?"

"Magic isn't all parlor tricks," Harry said evenly. "There are spells that can torture, control, and kill people in seconds." He wondered why he was telling Hiei this—surely he should already know this?

"I'd rather rely on my sword," said Hiei stiffly as they rounded a corner. "At least then you guarantee cutting something off."

"Have you….killed something with a sword?" Harry asked uneasily. Hiei opened his mouth, about to talk about some of the larger demons he'd murdered, when he suddenly imagined what Kurama would say if he found out about their conversation: _"You told Harry about how many things you've killed?! What were you thinking!?"_

"No, I've never killed sentient being," Hiei lied evenly. "But…I'd just prefer having a sharp sword in my hand than a little stick."

"I see," Harry said softly. Hiei's answers were only manufacturing more questions in Harry's mind: like, if Hiei was a real wizard, why did he prefer a cutting weapon to a wand that could do hundreds of spells? And why did he seem to know so little about magic? What kind of wizard was this little guy? _Well,_ Harry consoled himself, _maybe they teach things really different at Japanese magic schools._

"Have you ever killed anything?" Hiei asked conversationally. "I've heard about your active past…did you ever have to resort to slaying someone?"

"No," Harry replied starkly as the two passed a group of Hufflepuffs going in the opposite direction. Upon seeing Hiei and Harry, they drew in closer to each other and started whispering. Hiei and Harry ignored them.

"You didn't have fun growing up, did you?" Harry said abruptly.

"No. How could you tell?"

"Well, I've never seen you happy or smiling, not even around your friends…did…someone close to you die when you were young?"

Harry knew he was in big trouble as soon as he words came out of his mouth. Hiei spun around and glared at Harry with red eyes full of hatred. Harry flinched back, and even though the demon was shorter than him, he suddenly felt as though he was facing a giant about to squash him.

"That is none of your business," Hiei spat. "Just leave me alone if you know what's good for you." The demon turned and stalked down a hallway, leaving Harry shuddering with dread. For several moments he was frozen, then he shook himself and looked around in confusion. He had no idea where he was. Where was he even going again? Oh yeah…Divination…Harry blinked when he realized he had totally passed the corridor that lead to the Divination Tower while he had been walking with Hiei. He turned around and hurried up the hallway, cursing his absent-mindedness. And now he was going to be late for nothing. He had talked with Hiei hoping to get to know him better and feel more comfortable when he came near the little demon. He had only succeeded in alienating Hiei even more.

* * *

Kuwabara stared pensively out the window of the Divination Tower. The Gryffindor students were milling about in the small room, waiting for the trapdoor in the ceiling to open and allow them all to enter Professor Trelawny's classroom. Kuwabara didn't mind waiting. He was looking at the grassy lake shore with glazed eyes, imagining himself and Yukina having a private picnic together… with sandwiches and soda… potato salad… maybe some rice balls…

"I don't get it," Ron muttered from beside Yusuke. "Where the heck is Harry? He left the class before us; he should have been here by now."

"Hermione is going to be late too," Yusuke said, glancing around the room.

"Nah," Ron replied. "Hermione quit this class a long time ago. She thinks it's a load of tosh. Which it actually is." Yusuke's acute hearing suddenly picked up the sound of heavy breathing and labored footsteps coming up the stairs.

"Here comes Harry," Yusuke said out loud. Ron looked around to see Harry emerge from the circular staircase, panting.

"Where were you?" Ron said impatiently to his friend.

"Sorry, I was talking to Hiei," Harry said breathlessly. Yusuke and Ron stared at him in alarm.

"You were talking to Hiei? About what?" Yusuke said curiously.

"Oh this and that," Harry sighed. "I was trying to make friends with him…it didn't really work."

"Give Hiei time, he'll get used to you," said Yusuke casually. At that moment, there was a click above their heads, and a silver stepladder descended from the trap door. The students filed up into a shadowy, stuffy room full of tables, chairs and puffy cushions. Ron and Harry sat at a table together as usual. Kuwabara and Yusuke sat on a couple of cushions in front of them.

"Welcome, class," a misty, mysterious voice floated out. The class looked around to see a tall, skinny woman dressed in draping shawls and glittering jewels emerge from the shadows. "Ah, how wonderful to see you all in one piece," Professor Trelawny said dreamily. Her magnified eyes flicked at Harry, who held back a scowl. Yusuke and Kuwabara frowned. Trelawny suddenly caught sight of them and swooped over, crying, "You must be two of the four new students from China. No wait!" she closed her eyes and held her hand up at Yusuke and Kuwabara. "From Japan. It must be quite nice there. I understand there are a lot of Seers there, yes?"

"I don't know," Yusuke shrugged.

"Hm. I believe your names are…" she held her hand up again "…Yusuke Urameshi and Kazuma Kuwabara, is it not?" Most of the class oohed and aahed. Harry and Ron scowled at each other. No doubt some other student had already informed her about the newcomers.

"May I see your palm, young man?" Trelawny said to Yusuke. Yusuke held his hand out, palm up. Trelawny took it and delicately traced the lines on the skin.

"Goodness, you have a very violent future, Mr. Urameshi," she tutted. "Very violent indeed…I see…oh dear Lord…" she looked up at Yusuke pityingly. "I see you are going to cause great trouble to the people around you. Keep your temper in check, my dear boy." She patted his hand sympathetically and swooped away. The class sniggered as Yusuke glowered and sat back on his cushion.

"Now then class, today we will be reading dreams. That is, find answers by discussing shapes and forms you have had in recent or memorable dreams. Now I want you to split into pairs and…"

* * *

"MAN that was boring!" Yusuke said loudly as he, Kuwabara, Ron and Harry hopped off the last stair and made their way to the last class of the day, Defense against the Dark Arts.

"Tell me about it," Kuwabra groaned. "I was about to fall asleep."

"Hey, wait up!" Harry panted to the two of them. He and Ron hurried to catch up to the two Japanese students. Ron and Harry were amazed that Yusuke and Kuwabara still had energy after the long descent down the staircase; in fact, they didn't even seemed fazed.

"Geez, you two are slow," Yusuke said as Harry and Ron drew up to them, breathing hard.

"You're one to talk, Yusuke," an amused voice said behind Yusuke and Kuwabara. Kuwabara jumped and they both turned around.

Kurama was standing right behind them with a small smile.

"Where'd you pop up from?" Yusuke said in a slight surprise.

"Potions," Kurama replied. "It was quite interesting, only the teacher, Professor Snape, didn't seem to approve of me."

Ron wrinkled his nose. "Don't worry about it; he doesn't like anyone who isn't a Slytherin."

"That's extremely prejudiced of him," Kurama frowned.

"Yeah, but since when has Snape ever cared about someone's feelings?" Harry said bitterly.

"It's really too bad," Kurama said sadly. "He obviously did not have a happy childhood."

"Oh why are we bothering to talk about Snape?" Ron said loudly. "Kurama, what class are you going to next? We just got out of Divination."

"What a coincidence!" Kurama said brightly. "I'm going to Divination right now. And I believe Hiei has that class with me as well. Knowing him, he's already there. I'd better catch up with him before he causes any trouble. Have fun in Defense Against the Dark Arts." And with that and a wave, he hiked past them toward the Divination Tower.

"And you have fun in Divination; try to fall asleep quickly!" Yusuke called after him.

"The stairs are hell! Pace yourself!" Ron yelled at Kurama before he vanished around a corner.

"Defense Against the Dark Arts," Hermione said pensively as the five resumed their journey. "I wonder if that new teacher, Professor Umbridge is any good."

"I guess we'll find out," Harry said.

* * *

Dokkou: Hm, that chapter took pretty long for me to write, even though it was so drab. Hey guys, loyal fans and reviewers, I hate to say this, but the next chapter might take a lot longer to write. I have this habit of writing like five chapters early, that way I'm set for the next five times I update, which is exactly every two weeks. This chapter was the end of my chapter reserve, so now I'm writing on the fly, so to speak. In other words, the next chapter might not be posted on time. I'll try to hurry for you guys, but not if it means making a bad chapter. I'm a perfectionist, after all. Just sit tight, the next chapter will be worth the wait.

* * *


	11. Umbridge's Sentance

_Previously..._

_Kurama was standing right behind them with a small smile._

_"Where'd you pop up from?" Yusuke said in a slight surprise._

_"Potions," Kurama replied. "It was quite interesting, only the teacher, Professor Snape, didn't seem to approve of me."_

_Ron wrinkled his nose. "Don't worry about it, he doesn't like anyone who isn't a Slytherin."_

_"That's extremely prejudiced of him," Kurama frowned._

_"Yeah, but since when has Snape ever cared about someone's feelings?" Harry said bitterly._

_"It's really too bad," Kurama said sadly. "He obviously did not have a happy childhood."_

_"Oh why are we bothering to talk about Snape?" Ron said loudly. "Kurama, what class are you going to next? We just got out of Divination."_

_"What a coincidence!" Kurama said brightly. "I'm going to Divination right now. And I believe Hiei has that class with me as well. Knowing him, he's already there. I'd better catch up with him before he causes any trouble. Have fun in Defense Against the Dark Arts." And with that and a wave, he hiked past them toward the Divination Tower._

_"And you have fun in Divination. Try to fall asleep quickly!" Yusuke called after him._

_"The stairs are hell! Pace yourself!" Ron yelled at Kurama before he vanished around a corner._

_"Defense Against the Dark Arts," Hermione said pensively as the five resumed their journey. "I wonder if that new teacher, Professor Umbridge is any good."_

_"I guess we'll find out," Harry said._

* * *

Dokkou: Waaaaagh!! I'm so sorry everyone!! This story took me a stupid long time to update and i'm so sorry!! I hate lateness... and this is two weeks late!! I could kick myself... rrgh... especially since this chapter is so short and boring. I hate myself. (falls on face)

* * *

Trelawny's Prediction and Umbridge's Sentance

Hiei pulled idly on a thread that had frayed off the red tablecloth of his circular table. He eventually succeeded in ripping it free, creating a run in the cloth. He tossed the trailing thread over his shoulder and gazed around the room he was in.

The air was stuffy and smoky. A mismatch of chairs, tables, and cushions were scattered around. There were several bookcases full of crystal balls, tea sets and very old books up against the walls. Hiei's lips pursed. A regular fortune teller's lair, if he'd ever seen one. There were only a couple of windows, both of which had thick red curtains drawn over them. Hiei stood up, walked over to one such window, and pulled the curtains back.

It was cloudy and grey outside. Weak sunlight streamed into the room, illuminating the tables and objects. The effect was rather dismal, making the room feel more like an antique shop than a classroom. Hiei looked down through the window. It was a very long way to the ground. Hiei could see the lake glittering off in the distance. He took a breath of fresh air and watched a couple of birds flit across the iron grey sky in a show of impressive acrobatics. This was the view Hiei loved. The view you could only get from a high cliff, building, or tree; the view that made you feel as though you could jump up and fly away, like the finches that twisted and twirled above you, disappearing away from this accursed castle and soar to the farthest…

Hiei heard heavy footsteps coming up the silver stepladder. He jerked from his reverie, pulled the curtains closed and blurred back to his chair right before a couple of Gryffindor students came up the ladder, laughing and talking. Hiei ignored them and they ignored him. Soon, more and more students showed up, until the whole classroom was occupied, except for the near area around Hiei.

Last to ascend the silver stepladder was Kurama. As soon as the redhead saw Hiei, he started toward him, but he was intercepted by a group of Ravenclaw girls and dragged to the other side of the room. Kurama's expression flickered with exasperation for a moment and then it turned polite as he sat down in a large, red-padded chair. The girls sat on cushions around him, giggling and laughing like a harem. Hiei snorted in disgust. Kurama had his pathetic moments.

"Welcome, class," a mysterious, dreamy voice floated out. Everyone looked around to see a woman covered in shawls and jewels, like some giant bug, emerge from the shadows. "It is wonderful to see you all again in the physical world. And…" Her magnified eyes darted to Hiei and Kurama "…it is nice to see some new faces as well." She flowed over to Kurama and said mistily, "Mr…Minamino, I presume. May I see your palm? I wish to see your future." The girls around Kurama let out soft sighs of awe.

"Certainly," Kurama said with polite neutrality. But someone who was able to read Kurama's subtle expressions—such as Hiei—could sense his disdain.

Trelawny delicately took Kurama's hand and traced the lines with a long finger.

"Ah… interesting…very interesting," Trelawny murmured. "You have a fascinating palm indeed, Mr. Minamino… but wait…what is this?..." Her eyes grew even bigger as she stared at Kurama's hand. "My dear boy… I see blood in your future…betrayal… and… the death of one who is close to you…" The class whispered together in alarm as she spoke. "And a terrible change is in store for you," Trelawny went on softly. "Oh dear…beware of canines, Mr. Minamino." The girls around Kurama gasped softly. Kurama just looked at the teacher blandly. Beware of canines? He already knew that. Yoko was a handful, definitely, but nothing for Kurama to be afraid of.

"Don't worry, I'll be careful," said Kurama, taking his hand back with a polite smile. Trelawny pursed her lips, obviously realizing her warning had just been disregarded.

"Well then," she said stiffly, "Let us begin class." She swept to the front of the room and began talking about the delicate and important art of reading fog in a crystal ball. She told everyone to get a crystal ball and write down what shapes and forms they found in it. Kurama's harem stood and all offered to get him a ball. Kurama accepted the offer, and the girls walked away, bickering about who would give the ball to Kurama.

The red-head felt a stir of wind and turned to see Hiei take a seat next to him.

"You know, Kurama," the short demon said with a smirk, "You should heed her warning. I suddenly recall a Chihuahua giving you a bloodthirsty look back at the train station."

"I'll bar my windows," Kurama chuckled. "Hey, did you make a joke?"

Hiei shrugged. "Once in a blue moon, it happens. Usually when I'm half-dead or insane."

"So you just went crazy?"

"I'm about to," Hiei growled. "This class is useless."

"Yes well, you can't win them all," Kurama said mildly, watching the group of girls all fight over a very shiny crystal ball. Hiei followed his gaze and snorted.

"I don't know. Looks like you won all the ones in the class." Kurama smiled. It was unusual for Hiei to be so chatty, but he found he was enjoying the demon's company. Contrary to popular belief, being idolized by girls was not always enjoyable.

Kurama tried to understand how Hiei was feeling. The demon was obviously miserable and bored. _Well he had better get used to it,_ Kurama thought as the crystal ball went sailing into the air, _because we've got a long year ahead of us._

The crystal ball conked an unfortunate kid in the back of the head and the poor boy smacked face-first on the floor.

* * *

Hiei and Kurama turned a corner and saw two familiar backs walking away.

"Yusuke, Kuwabara," Kurama called out. The two boys ahead of them turned around to the demons with frowns.

"Hey guys, how was Divination?" Yusuke asked as the four joined together.

Hiei shrugged. "Apparently, Kurama is going to live a short, miserable life and die by being ripped apart by dogs." Yusuke and Kuwabara stared at him, then at Kurama, pop-eyed. Kurama snickered.

"That's not exactly what she said, Hiei. She just said I was going to be betrayed and to _beware_ of dogs."

"My mistake," Hiei sniffed.

"Sounds like loads of fun," Yusuke muttered as the four made their way to the Great Hall and dinner.

"How was Defense against the Dark Arts?" Kurama inquired.

"Lousy!" Yusuke shouted as Kuwabara burst out, "The worst class I've ever been to!"

Kurama looked at them in alarm. "What happened?"

"The teacher sucks!" Yusuke said furiously. "She gave me, Kuwabara and Harry detention!!"

Kurama sighed. "Detention on your first day," he said disapprovingly. "Really, you two, you could at least try to—"

"It wasn't like that!" Yusuke cut in angrily.

"She gave us detention for something totally--totally—stupid!!" Kuwabara sputtered.

"She gave you detentions for being stupid?" Hiei droned. "I don't see anything wrong with…"

"SHUT UP!" Kuwabara shouted.

"It really wasn't fair," Yusuke scowled. "We got into the classroom and…"

FLASHBACK

Yusuke and Kuwabara sat in the desks behind Ron, Harry and Hermione.

"Hey guys," Yusuke grinned.

"Hi, Yusuke," Ron greeted.

"So what are we going to do in this class?" Kuwabara said. "Learn super cool spells to defeat evil?"

"That's what this class is supposed to be about," Hermione replied. "We've never had a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher that has lasted for more than a whole year."

Yusuke blinked. "Really?"

"Yeah," Ron replied. He began counting on his fingers. "In our first year, the teacher was a demented freak who wanted to kill Harry… the second year was a brainless, vain git who couldn't teach his way out of a paper bag…"

"Ron!" Hermione frowned. "Professor Lockhart wasn't a terrible—"

"Third year," Ron raised his voice, "We actually got a really great teacher named Lupin…but he turned out to be a werewolf. Fourth year, we got _another _demented freak who disguised himself as a slightly less demented freak in order to kill Harry."

"Geez," said Kuwabara. "What's it gonna be this year?"

"A normal person," Harry replied. "Her name is Professor Umbridge."

There was a sudden squeak as the doors at the back of the classroom swung open. The class quickly stopped talking and looked around to see a squat, toad-like woman walk up the center aisle to the front of the room. She was wearing a very fluffy pink dress with a pink scarf. Yusuke and Kuwabara shuddered.

"Doesn't this look like fun," Yusuke muttered to Kuwabara.

"Did you have something to say, young man?" the toad-woman said suddenly with a sweet smile at Yusuke. The class looked at the Spirit Detective as he said, "Nah, just thinking of that blueberry muffin I had for breakfast this morning."

"Well," Professor Umbridge said with a wide smile, "We're not in the breakfast room right now Mr…"

"The name is Yusuke Urameshi," Yusuke replied.

"Mr. Urameshi. A transfer student, correct?" Umbridge said.

"Yup."

"Well, Mr. Urameshi, perhaps things are different in your home country but we do not talk about blueberry muffins while we are in class. I will let you off with a warning though, as you are new." A couple of the students snickered. Umbridge tapped a short wand on the blackboard to silence the giggles then smiled, "My name is Professor Umbridge. I will be your new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. Wands will not be needed," she added, and the students unhappily put their wands back in their bags. "Instead, I'd like you to turn to page five in your Defensive Magical Theory books by Wilbert Slinkhard..."

END FLASHBACK

"That _was_ a bit cheeky, Yusuke," Kurama said as the entered the noisy Great Hall. Instead of sitting down immediately though, they stood together by the door.

"Yeah, but that wasn't the worst part," Yusuke scowled. "Hermione started questioning the material in the book and Umbridge started spewing all this bogus…"

CONTINUE FLASHBACK

"…It is my understanding that my predecessor not only performed illegal curses in front of you, he actually performed them on you--"

"Well he turned out to be a maniac, didn't he?" said Dean Thomas hotly. "Mind you, we still learned loads—"

"_Your hand is not up, Mr. Thomas_!" trilled Professor Umbridge, "Now, it is the view of the Ministry that a theoretical knowledge will be more sufficient to get you through your examination, which is, after all, what school is all about. And your name is?" she added, staring at Parvati, whose hand had just shot up.

"Parvati Patil, and isn't there a practical bit in our Defense Against the Dark Arts O.W.L.? Aren't we supposed to show that we can actually do the countercurses and things?"

"As long as you have studied the theory hard enough, there is no reason why you should not be able to perform the spells under carefully controlled examination conditions," said Professor Umbridge dismissively.

"Without ever practicing them before?" said Parvati incredulously. "Are you telling us that the first time we'll get to do the spells will be during our exam?"

"I repeat, as long as you have studied the theory hard enough—"

"And what good's theory going to be in the real world?" said Harry loudly, his fist in the air again.

"Amen to that," Yusuke muttered.

Professor Umbridge looked up.

"This is school, Mr. Potter, not the real world," she said softly.

Before Harry could answer, Yusuke jammed his hand into the air and said, "Yeah but when we graduate the world isn't going to be all fluttering butterflies and fields of daisies. What happens if we're stuck in a forest somewhere and a huge monster comes along?"

"That is highly unlikely as long as you stick to a human-inhabited area like you're supposed to," Umbridge trilled.

"But it could happen!" Harry said loudly. "You're saying we shouldn't be prepared for what's waiting out there?"

"There is nothing waiting out there, Mr. Potter."

"Oh yeah?" said Harry, anger bubbling up inside him.

"Who do you imagine wants to attack children like yourselves?" inquired Umbridge in a horrible honeyed voice.

"Hmm, let's think…" said Harry in a mock thoughtful voice, "Maybe _Lord Voldemort?_"

"Yeah," Kuwabara said, "Voldemort doesn't sound like the sort of guy who cares about who he kills or how old they are. Oh, oops." He quickly stuck his hand in the air as the students in the classroom gasped in shock. Umbridge looked at Harry and Kuwabara unflinchingly and said softly, "Ten points from Gryffindor." Kuwabara's jaw dropped. The class was silent.

"Now, let me make a few things quite plain." Professor Umbridge stood up and leaned toward them, her stubby-fingered hands splayed on the desk.

"You have been told that a certain Dark wizard has returned from the dead—"

"He wasn't dead," Harry said angrily, "but yeah, he's returned!"

"This is a lie," Umbridge said simply.

"What?" Yusuke said incredulously as Harry shouted, "It is NOT a lie! I saw him! I fought him!"

"Detention, Mr. Potter!" said Professor Umbridge triumphantly. "Tomorrow evening, five o' clock. My office."

"That's not fair!" Yusuke burst out angrily, and the class stared at him. "Harry fought Voldemort!" –the students gasped at the name—"_Several times! _Voldemort's been out to get him since day one! He's the worst threat the magical community has ever faced! How can you just ignore him when so many signs point to the fact that he's still alive?"

"Heck, didn't he kill that Diggory kid just last year!?" Kuwabara added loudly. "You can't say that wasn't an accident!"

"Detention!" Umbridge said coldly, "For both of you! Same time and place as Mr. Potter. And yes, Mr… Kuwabara, is it? Mr. Diggory's death _was_ a tragic accident."

"It was murder!" said Harry. "Voldemort killed him and you know it."

"Are you blind?" Yusuke said in disgust. Professor Umbridge's face was blank. Then she said in her softest, most sweetly girlish voice, "Come here, Mr. Potter dear."

He kicked his chair aside, strode around Ron and Hermione and up to the teacher's desk. Yusuke and Kuwabara were on their feet, glaring at Umbridge. The class was holding its breath.

Professor Umbridge pulled a small roll of pink parchment out of her handbag, stretched it out on the desk, dipped her quill into a bottle of ink and started scribbling, hunched over so that Harry couldn't see what she was writing. Nobody spoke. After a minute or so she rolled up the parchment and tapped it with her wand; it sealed itself seamlessly so that he could not open it.

"The three of you will take this to Professor McGonagall," said Umbridge sweetly, holding out the note, which Harry snatched without a word. He, Yusuke and Kuwabara turned mutinously and left the room, not looking back once.

END FLASHBACK

"And that's what happened," Yusuke finished grumpily. "All three of us got a five-day detention with that overgrown toad just for telling the truth." Kurama and Hiei were frowning.

"Well," Kurama said carefully, "I believe it was not right of you three to lose your tempers…"

"What!?" Yusuke said furiously.

"But I wholeheartedly agree with you that telling the truth did not deserve that much punishment."

" '_That much _punishment' ?! Who's side are you on!?" Kuwabara said in disgust. He and Yusuke stalked off to the Gryffindor table, where another fellow ticked-off detention victim was sitting angrily. The area around Harry was empty, except for Hermione and Ron who were trying to talk to him.

"That went well," Hiei said in a monotone. Kurama sighed.

"Indeed. I have a feeling that surviving this year has suddenly become more complicated."

* * *

Dokkou: Okaaay, looking over it again i realize it's not HORRIBLE. Still, not my best...everyone I'm so sorry it's late. As reconciliation, the next chapter is going to be posted a week early and be super awesome!!

Next Chapter: The Poltergeist and An Unexpected Hero

Summary: Peeves says hello to the new students in an oh so pleasant way, but he's going to meet more than he bargained for. And Care of Magical creatures class is going to get messy--how can it not with a twelve-foot-long dinosaur?

**_FREE BEER!!_**

now that I've got your attention...I've decided to set up a little contest. Whoever comes closest to guessing my age most accurately by _year and month _will be inserted briefly into the story! Unless they don't want to, of course, in which case the insertion will go to the next closest contender. **If you do not also submit a month, your guess will be disregarded. **

Here's a hint: my age is somewhere between 10 and 40.

Good Luck!

* * *


	12. the Poltergeist and an Unexpected Hero

_Previously..._

_"And that's what happened," Yusuke finished grumpily. "All three of us got a five-day detention with that overgrown toad just for telling the truth." Kurama and Hiei were frowning._

_"Well," Kurama said carefully, "I believe it was not right of you three to lose your tempers…"_

_"What!?" Yusuke said furiously._

_"But I wholeheartedly agree with you that telling the truth did not deserve that much punishment."_

_" '__That much punishment' ?! Who's side are you on!?" Kuwabara said in disgust. He and Yusuke stalked off to the Gryffindor table, where another fellow ticked-off detention victim was sitting angrily. The area around Harry was empty, except for Hermione and Ron who were trying to talk to him._

_"That went well," Hiei said in a monotone. Kurama sighed._

_"Indeed. I have a feeling that surviving this year has suddenly become more complicated."_

* * *

Dokkou: (appears in a sparkly black goth dress)

Okay everyone, here's that chapter I promised. Right on time! I could sing! But I'll grant you all mercy and not. Hope you all enjoy this chapter and I assure you all that there will be NO delays in the near future!

But fiiiiiirrst... I shall announce the winner of the Guess my Age Contest! And the closest winner, guessing at June and 15 years iiiiiisss... (rips an envelope open and reads the card inside)

**9shadowcat9!! Congratulations!! **(throws confetti everywhere)

Knight25, you were so close! Your same guess was in the review directly after Shadowcat's. Thus being, I shall strongly consider putting you into the story as well.

The correct answer, everyone, was 15 years: February 26th, 1993. All of you were actually closer than i was expecting. Good show.

Now then! Enjoy this week early story that i posted because-I'm-annoyed-at-myself-for-posting-late- and-being-at-a-writer's-block-and-why-are-you-wasting-

time-reading-this-instead-of-reading-the-chapter-i-worked-on-so-hard-for-you!?

* * *

The Poltergeist and An Unexpected Hero

"So did you finish that essay we were supposed to do for potions?" Harry said to Ron as they walked down the entrance hall toward the Great Hall where breakfast was waiting.

"No," Ron moaned. "I got stuck halfway through and I just stopped writing it. I hope Hermione can help me."

"She's probably already at the breakfast table. She wasn't waiting for us in the common room."

But as the two entered the Great Hall and sat at the Gryffindor table, they saw no sign of Hermione.

"Well that's weird," Ron frowned.

"She'll be here, don't worry," Harry said casually as he grabbed a piece of toast and buttered it. They waited for five minutes and then, to Ron's relief, Hermione entered the Great Hall and made a beeline for the two of them, a thick book held beneath her arm.

"There you are!" Ron cried as Hermione sat across from him. "Look I need your help with that potions essay….erm, where were you?"

"I was in the library," Hermione said breathlessly. "I was looking for this book and I finally found it." She set the large book on the table with a heavy thump that made the glasses rattle. The book's front was covered in strange symbols.

"What is this?" Harry asked, tilting his head at the book.

Hermione said eagerly, "I was curious about that word Hiei used yesterday: 'Ningen'. Kurama didn't seem to want to tell me what it meant, so I went to the library and I found this English-Japanese dictionary! Listen to this…" she heaved the book open to about half way. She put her finger on one section and read: "Ningen: Translation, English: Human, mortal, normal individual." She looked up at Harry and Ron perplexedly.

"So," Ron said, wrinkling his nose, "Basically Hiei has been calling us 'humans' all this time?"

"Yes," Hermione said solemnly, "And he speaks it in a way as if to suggest he…isn't human. As if he's separate from us." The three of them looked at each other.

"He isn't human," Ron suddenly said in a soft, serious voice. "It's so obvious… it's been in front of our noses the whole time." Harry and Hermione stared at him in shock.

"What are you saying?" Hermione breathed. Ron held up a dramatic finger.

"Hiei," he said in all seriousness, "Is a vampire!" Harry gave a snort of laughter and Hermione frowned.

"Oh please, I've never heard anything so ridiculous in my life," Hermione said derisively. "Dumbledore would never let a vampire into the school!"

"He let a werewolf teach here, didn't he?" Ron whispered, which ended Harry's laughter. "Why not invite a vampire while he's at it?"

Hermione was shaking her head. "Ron…"

"I bet I can prove it!" Ron said eagerly. "Do the house elves serve anything with garlic for breakfast?... oh, or if I hold up a cross or—" He was cut off by a loud splash and two loud yells which made everyone in the Great Hall jump. Everyone looked around to the entrance hall.

Yusuke and Kuwabara were standing just inside the double doors. They were dripping wet and shivering, their eyes wide with shock. Floating about thirty feet above them, holding an empty bucket, was Peeves the Poltergeist, laughing his head off.

"Oooh, got you good!" he cackled. "Thought I should drop by and say hello to the new students!" Yusuke spat out a mouthful of water and glared up at Peeves.

"Oooh, scary," Peeves said in a mock-frightened voice. He hooted with laughter and dropped the bucket right on Kuwabara's head. Kuwabara let out a yell as he tried to pull the bucket off.

"Why you!" Yusuke roared up furiously at the Poltergeist. He took an angry step forward and for a second he looked truly dangerous—but then he slipped in the huge puddle of water around him and crashed onto the floor. There were several laughs from the Slytherin table.

"Yusuke! Kuwabara! Are you alright?" Kurama's alarmed voice floated out. He and Hiei suddenly appeared from the entrance hall and went over to Yusuke and Kuwabara. Kurama helped Kuwabara pull the bucket off his head.

"What happened?" Hiei said to Yusuke as he watched the spirit detective shakily get to his feet.

"That flying rat up there dumped a bucket of water on us!" Yusuke said with an angry look up at Peeves. The poltergeist cackled.

"Who said it was water?" He said, his eyes glittering evilly. Yusuke let out a snarl of fury, took a step forward, slipped again, and slammed onto the floor. The Slytherins roared with laughter. Hiei looked up at Peeves, eyes narrowed coldly.

"Hold still, Detective," he said stiffly. "We'll take care of this." He instinctively reached to his left hip but felt nothing there. He mentally cursed, remembering that his sword was locked up in an office.

"Hiei, look out!" Kurama's voice broke through Hiei's irritable thoughts. He looked up and swiftly leaped back several feet, just in time.

A red balloon exploded in a shower of water right where he had been standing. Hiei bared his teeth and quickly dodged another missile.

Above them, Peeves cackled and procured another balloon from some mysterious place. This one he lobbed at Kurama, who easily dodged it with a fluid backward flip. There were oohs of awe from several people. The red-head reached into his robe, whipped out his wand and called, "Rictsefio!" Golden sparks shot from his wand at Peeves. But the poltergeist just laughed and flipped in mid-air out of the way. His laugh was abruptly cut off when a muffin shot into his open mouth.

Hiei glared up at Peeves, tossing another muffin up and down in his hand. "The next one is going up your nose," Hiei hissed. Peeves spat the muffin out and hurled a water balloon at Hiei. The demon dodged it and flicked the muffin at Peeves. It hit him in the forehead with a satisfying thump before crumbling. Peeves wailed as he rubbed his crumb-filled eyes.

"Okay, so I lied," Hiei said, pursing his lips. Kurama immediately raised his wand and shouted, "Rictsefio!" Again, golden sparks blasted out but this time they hit their mark. Peeves went rolling back and slammed against a wall. He shook his head and fled out of the Great Hall shouting, "This means war, you hear me? THIS MEANS WAR!!" he let out a shriek and zoomed away, narrowly avoiding a blueberry muffin.

"Pathetic coward," Hiei sniffed. The Great Hall was silent for a minute; then it erupted into applause. Hiei blinked in confusion as he stepped back next to Kurama. Yusuke and Kuwabara came up to the two demons, wringing their wet clothes out.

"Gee, thanks for taking the spotlight and making us look like idiots," Yusuke said sarcastically.

"You don't need our help with that," Hiei sneered.

"Shut up, Shrimpy!" Kuwabara shouted.

"That line is getting old," Hiei drawled. "Can't you come up with anything more imaginative? Or is your little brain incapable of—"

"Hiei," Kurama cut in with a frown. Hiei fell into a brooding silence. Kurama glanced around the hall. Almost everyone was staring at them.

"I'm gonna go dry off," Yusuke said irritably.

"You'll probably miss breakfast," said Kurama mildly. Yusuke pursed his lips, snatched a piece of toast off the end of the Gryffindor table and squelched off out of the hall.

"Hey, wait for me, Urameshi!" Kuwabara cried, hurrying after him.

* * *

Yusuke and Kuwabara just barely made it to double charms before the bell rang. They collapsed into chairs by Harry, Ron and Hermione, now completely dry. When Kurama entered the room he was surrounded by girls who led him toward the back of the class, laughing and giggling around him.

"Disgusting," Ron sneered.

"Jealous?" Harry smirked. Ron's shoulders sagged like a deflated soccer ball.

"Yes."

"I'm not," Harry said, watching Kurama tell an apparently very funny joke because the girls around him suddenly burst out laughing. "I'm glad I'm not the center of attention anymore. It was really nerve-racking."

"Yeah, but _look_ at him," Ron moaned, gazing at Kurama enviously. "They can't get enough of him!"

"Let's hope there's enough of our friend to hold a conversation with when they're done," Harry said with a small smile.

* * *

Double Charms passed quickly, which Harry, Ron, Yusuke and Kuwabara were glad of; charming a toad to make it sing like an opera star is NOT easy. In fact, Kurama and Hermione were the only ones in the whole class who managed it.

Double Transfiguration with the Slytherins was no walk in the park either. They were learning how to transfigure a silver chalice into an aardvark. As usual, Harry, Ron and Hermione avoided all the Slytherins, especially Malfoy and Hiei. But Yusuke and Kuwabara had no problems with approaching Hiei and holding a conversation with him (or at least trying to).

It was during the next class, Care of Magical Creatures, that the day finally got interesting.

The Slytherins and Gryffindors headed out of the school down to the wooden cabin that sat on the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Harry felt his robe flutter behind him. He glanced over his shoulder and nearly stumbled.

"You surprised me," he said to Hiei, who was padding along beside him.

"Is this class outside?" Hiei asked. Harry thought he detected an edge of hope in his voice.

"Yes. In this class we learn about magical animals and how they benefit wizardkind," Harry answered.

"Are we going into the forest?" Hiei asked casually, but still with that note of eagerness.

"Of course not," Harry replied. "The forest is dangerous. We might go in like fifty feet, but no more."

"Oh." Obvious disappointment.

"Believe me, you don't want to go in there," Harry said softly to the demon as the students made their way down a step, grassy path toward the hut. "The Forbidden Forest has a lot of nasty creatures in it."

"Is that supposed to scare me?" Hiei sneered. "I've faced dangerous creatures my entire life. I can handle anything that forest throws at me." Harry glanced at Hiei. The demon's head was held high with confidence and pride. He obviously didn't doubt his own words in the slightest, which Harry found shocking. He thought back to when he had met Voldemort in the forest during his first year.

_You wouldn't be able to face that,_ Harry thought dryly.

"Want a bet?" Hiei sniffed. Harry blinked.

"W-what?" he stammered.

"Nothing," Hiei muttered, and he picked up the pace, leaving Harry in a whirl of bewilderment.

The students arrived at the hut, in front of which stood a familiar half-giant.

"Alright there, Harry?" Hagrid said cheerfully.

"I'm great," Harry replied. "What are we doing today?"

"Oh I got a really special lesson for you all today," Hagrid said with a wink and rubbing his hands together. Harry immediately became uneasy.

"Alright, all right, everyone gather round and follow me," Hagrid said loudly. The Gryffindors and Slytherins all came closer. Harry spotted Ron and Hermione and beckoned them over. Yusuke and Kuwabara stood a little way off, talking quietly. Hiei stood apart from the group, looking at the Forbidden forest longingly.

Hagrid turned and stumped off toward the trees. The students reluctantly followed. After about a five-minute walk, the group came to a wide stream. Hagrid turned and addressed the crowd; "Right then. Today we're going to be learning about River Drakes. Beautiful creatures, they are. Grow to be about twelve feet long an' half o' that is the tail. They're usually blue, brown, or green colored. Now it was my good fortune to come across a young river drake in this very stream." He pointed at the creek proudly; several students took uneasy steps back. "His name is William, or Will for short," Hagrid went on cheerily. Harry, Ron and Hermione traded glances. 'William' was just the sort of simple, normal name that Hagrid would give to a flesh-rending beast.

"Let's get him out of the water, eh?" Hagrid said. He took a deep breath and let out a long, shrill whistle that caused nearby birds to take flight in alarm. The students drew together anxiously, staring at the water. For a long minute, the only sound and movement came from the trees rustling in the breeze and the water cackling over the rocks. Hagrid pulled on his beard thoughtfully.

"Maybe he needs a bit more motivation," he said. He reached into his pocket and took out a very large chunk of raw meat. He pulled his giant arm back and tossed the meat into the water. It hit with a bloody splash and then sank into the depths.

This time the wait was barely thirty seconds before the water rippled violently and the hunk of meat suddenly shot straight up out of the stream. As it came back down, a huge pair of jaws bristling with teeth erupted from the river and snapped the meat up in one bite. The class screamed and stumbled back in terror. The huge crocodile-like creature thumped down on the bank of the stream licking its chops with a long, forked, black tongue. It hardly looked like the majestic dragon often depicted in fantastical paintings.

It was a lackluster blue color dappled with brown. It had a very short, squat build. Its four scaly legs were bowlegged and armed with sharp black claws. On the end of a two-foot-long neck sat a large, narrow head. A fin ran from its forehead along its back and ended at the tip of the six-foot tail. On the drake's back, the fin spiked up into a high leather sail. Even the thick brown leather collar around its neck didn't take away from its wild and frightening image.

"Hello, William!" Hagrid said in a cheerful voice. He could have been addressing a pet Chihuahua. The river drake turned its head and fixed its beady yellow eyes on Hagrid. It lifted itself up and waddled over to the half-giant in a fashion extremely similar to a crocodile on land, with its tail and head swinging back and forth. The students all stepped back fearfully. Hiei, Yusuke and Kuwabara were the only ones who bravely remained in place.

"William, you little devil," Hagrid said fondly, "Where have you been the last couple o' hours? Out hunting?" William snorted and stuck his snout into Hagrid's pocket, no doubt looking for more meat treats.

"So everyone, this is William!" Hagrid said to the class cheerfully. "William, say hello to the class!" he patted the drake on his scaly head. William looked at the kids and let out a noise like a mix of a snort and a shriek.

"Now who wants to come over an' say hello?" Hagrid said. Everyone looked at him in horror. There were several moments of silence.

"No one?" Hagrid said, his face falling. Harry took a breath and was about to step forward just so that Hagrid wouldn't look bad when someone else stepped forward instead.

"I will!" The class looked at Yusuke in surprise, at his cocky grin and fearless complexion.

"Wonderful!" Hagrid said delightedly. "Come on over!" Yusuke strode toward the drake casually.

"Careful, Urameshi, that thing looks nasty," Kuwabara whispered to him as he passed.

"Relax," Yusuke grinned. "I've faced way worse."

William stared at Yusuke and Yusuke stared back. Yusuke slowly extended his hand and gingerly patted the scaly head. The class watched in awe as Will rumbled contentedly.

"Very good!" Hagrid beamed. "Now yeh reward him!" he reached into an inside pocket of his overcoat and pulled out a piece of meat. Will's nostrils flared eagerly. Hagrid handed the meat to Yusuke, who took it with a look of disgust. Will's head swiveled to Yusuke.

"Ah, good lizard," Yusuke muttered with a hint of unease. He held out the meat to Will. The drake came forward, eyes locked on the morsel in Yusuke's hand.

"Are you sure he's not going to bite me?" said Yusuke, watching the hulking beast.

"Of course not," Hagrid answered. "Will is as gentle as a horse. Only attacks dead or bloody meat."

"Well that's reassuring," Yusuke muttered. Draco Malfoy's eyes shone and he whispered excitedly to Crabbe and Goyle. Hiei glanced at Malfoy suspiciously.

"Atta boy, Yusuke," Hagrid said with obvious delight at Will gently tugged the meat out of Yusuke's hand. Malfoy pulled out his wand and whispered a word. Faint green sparks filed out of the wand tip and floated away.

A pair of red eyes followed their progress as they wove through the crowd and settled on the back of Harry's neck. Harry swatted his neck, as though a bothersome fly had just settled there.

Hagrid was talking to the kids about river drakes: "Usually, river Drakes lay their eggs on the banks of large rivers. There are about 15 eggs to a clutch a year." Harry scratched his neck and blinked when he felt something wet… "The mother drakes are extremely protective o' their nests, so I don't recommend yeh come more'n twenty feet close to her…" Harry stared at the pinpricks of blood on his fingertips… "River Drakes are usually used as security in rivers for waterfront houses and businesses…" Will's head snapped up and his nostrils flared… "Their scales are also ground into powder and used in camouflage potions…" Will turned to Harry, his black tongue flicking out… "The biggest river drake ever recorded was about fifty—WILLIAM! NO! BAD!!" Hagrid's cry came too late. William leaped forward, mouth open, claws flared, right at Harry's throat. The students all scattered, shrieking in terror. Harry yelled, stumbled back, tripped over a root, stared at the teeth lunging at him…

"Harry move!" the wind was knocked out of Harry as Kuwabara tackled him and they both rolled out of the way of the gnashing fangs. Will's talons dug into bloodless soil. He turned with a hiss and lunged at Harry and Kuwabara.

"Bad dragon!" Yusuke snarled. He pulled his fist back, leaped forward and slammed it into Will's jaw. The drake twisted and collapsed on the ground. Yusuke looked at his fist. The rough scales had grazed the skin of his knuckles off; they were now bleeding profusely. The drake pushed itself to its feet. Nostrils flaring, head swinging in confusion from the smell of blood, Will bared his fangs and leaped at Yusuke. The spirit detective cried out and rolled out of the way a split second before Will's claws split his head.

Will whirled and his eyes locked on Harry and Kuwabara. He lunged with a snarl. Kuwabara shoved Harry out of the way and with a furious roar, kicked the side of Will's head. But the lizard's momentum was too strong and he barreled into Kuwabara despite the powerful kick and pinned him to the dirt. Kuwabara's head slammed into the ground and stars popped in front of his eyes. Will snarled down at him and opened his jaws wide enough for Kuwabara to see every glistening black fang. It was all too easy to imagine his head fitting perfectly inside. Kuwabara yelled as the jaws descended down on him.

"Oh no you don't!" a voice said fiercely. Hiei ran forward, launched into the air and landed right on Will's back, causing the enormous head to snap up; the front teeth just barely missed Kuwabara's forehead. The sail folded down beneath the demon's weight.

"Woo! Cowboy!" Yusuke couldn't help saying. Will hissed and leaped backward off Kuwabara, bucking like a rodeo bull.

The rest of the class watched them all behind trees a way off, their eyes wide. Hagrid ran to Harry and Kuwabara, asking fearfully, "Harry, Harry, are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Harry gasped. His attention was caught by Will letting out a roar and rearing up on his back legs. Hiei pressed himself to the scaly back and wrapped his arms securely around the corded neck. The drake twisted his hand around, trying to reach the demon with his teeth. But his neck wasn't long enough; no matter which way he turned, he couldn't touch Hiei. Will let out a roar of fury, fell to all fours and shot off like a wild mustang across the clearing. Hiei clenched his teeth and held on tighter as the wind whipped through his spiky black hair. The drake tried to dislodge him for five long, turbulent minutes, leaping and twisting like a wild bronco. Hiei only pushed back the dizziness of Will's twisting body and held on tight. His balance countered Will's every move and he was actually starting to feel exhilarated. But he knew letting this go on much longer would be a bad idea.

Will reared up and shrieked and as he did so, Hiei pressed his right palm to the back of the drake's head.

An electric shock seemed to go through the lizard's body. Beneath his sleeve, beneath his bandages, Hiei's black dragon tattoo pulsed. Will let out a long, loud howl of fear. He sensed the presence of dragon; a huge, powerful, hungry dragon. Will twisted and circled and ran and shrieked like a dog in pain. His fearful yellow eyes landed on an escape rout; the stream.

Hiei sensed a new purpose in Will's body. He looked up from the scaly back and through the confusing jostle he saw the water coming closer.

_No!_ Hiei unwrapped himself from the reptile and pulled away but it was too late. Will took a flying leap and landed in the creek with a titanic splash. Hiei felt the water surround him and cut off all noise. He pushed off the river drake's back and watched Will shoot like an arrow through the water into the depths.

Hiei thrashed futilely in the water. The bottom of the stream was about four feet below him and the surface was three feet above him. He lurched for the surface and got nowhere; the current was dragging him down and away.

_No! _Silver bubbles erratically shot to the sunlit surface from his mouth. Hiei reached upward, but only sank lower into the black depths.

At that moment he really wished he knew how to swim. Darkness was just gathering at the corners of his eyes when he felt pressure on his wrists and felt himself being pulled up. The water around him fell downward as he was hauled to the surface and—

_Splash!_ In an explosion of silver droplets, Hiei was pulled out of the water. He gasped in air as he was dragged onto solid ground.

"Hiei, you okay?" Yusuke exclaimed as he and Kuwabara let go of the demon's wrists. Hiei coughed and spat out water before gasping, "Yeah, I'm fine." He stood up, breathing hard and dripping wet.

"Whoa! You just jumped on that drake's back like a freaking cowboy!" Kuwabara yelled. "That was so cool!... but dangerous! What were you thinking?"

"I was trying to prevent the drake from biting anyone's head off, Simpleton," Hiei grunted, flipping his hair out of his face. His hair was no longer spiky; it was plastered, straight and shiny, to his neck. It reached to about his shoulders in a rather cool, attractive way.

"Now look what you've done!" a voice said loudly. Everyone looked around at Malfoy who had disengaged himself from the cowering class as soon as the danger was gone and was now standing in the clearing. He was looking at Hagrid, both accusing and triumphant. Hagrid seemed to be in a state of shock.

"Bringing a drake to class!" Malfoy said harshly. "How idiotic can you get? It attacked Potter and nearly got Jaganshi killed… and you just stood like a tree stump while it happened! Some teacher you are." He looked at Hagrid contemptuously. Hiei felt his temper rise, and his wet clothes started steaming.

"You shut your mouth!" Hiei spat at Malfoy. "You're the one who caused all this trouble in the first place!" Malfoy's eyes flickered beneath the accusation. The rest of the class looked at Malfoy then at each other in confusion.

"I think you hit your head on your little joyride," Malfoy sneered. "I've just been standing here the whole time."

"I saw you," Hiei said savagely. "I saw you send a spell at Potter. It hit his neck and caused him to bleed." Malfoy twitched. Behind him, the class murmured amongst itself. Harry touched the back of his neck and felt blood.

"I did no such thing!" Malfoy snapped. "You're insane. Which explains why you jumped on that monster's back."

"He's not," a trembling voice said. Everyone looked at Hagrid.

"Not what?" Malfoy snapped.

"Will isn't a monster," Hagrid said weakly. "Something went wrong. He's always so sweet and gentle."

"Ha!" Malfoy barked. "When pigs fly! When my father hears about this, he'll have that monster hunted down and you will get the sack!" Malfoy pointed at Hagrid.

"I don't think so." A wet hand grabbed Malfoy's hand and shoved it down. Malfoy snarled at Hiei, who stood in front of him, glaring. Crabbe and Goyle immediately stepped forward, cracking their knuckles at Hiei threateningly. Yusuke and Kuwabara stepped up to them menacingly, readying themselves for a fight. They squared off, trading growls of intimidation.

"You won't be able to say anything because we're going to break all your teeth!" Yusuke spat at Malfoy. Hiei pushed Malfoy back and whispered to Yusuke and Kuwabara, "We have a choice here; we can either take this fight and end up getting Hagrid in trouble or we can back down and no one will even know about this whole thing."

Yusuke frowned at him. "You think everyone is just going to forget about this?"

"I can make them forget," Hiei whispered as Crabbe and Goyle advanced on them. "What's it going to be?" he glanced at Yusuke, who pursed his lips.

"What would Kurama do?..." he muttered to himself. He sighed when he realized what Kurama would do.

"Okay, Hiei, do your thing," Yusuke murmured. Hiei's eyes narrowed and he stepped right up to Crabbe and Goyle. They growled threateningly at him. Hiei held up his hands at their faces and stared deep into their dull eyes.

"You have no reason to fight," Hiei said to them. His voice surrounded them and wove into their minds like a serpent. The bullies blinked. Hiei raised his arms and looked deep into all the students' eyes. The kids stared at him, their bodies limp, everything around them disappearing. Nothing existed but those intense, red eyes.

His Jagan eye was glowing beneath his headband as he wove a new Truth into the humans' minds. His voice came out as a mesmerizing breath of wind:

"Forget what you saw. Yusuke, Kuwabara and I did not fight the drake. Harry was not attacked. Nothing of interest happened. A river drake came out of the water and went back in." His voice held an ethereal conviction. Even Yusuke and Kuwabara almost found themselves believing him before they shook their heads and covered their ears.

Harry and Hagrid stared at the students in alarm; they all seemed to be in a stupor. They had no idea what was going on. Hiei looked around and his eyes locked with Harry's. Harry let out a small gasp. Reality dripped away, replaced only by Hiei's red eyes.

"Forget," a reverberating voice whispered. It sounded pained. Harry wanted nothing more than to help it, even though he didn't know why or what was happening.

Suddenly the eyes closed and Harry heard a small groan. He blinked and his stupor ended.

Hiei had sunk to his knees and was clutching his forehead. He was breathing hard. Yusuke and Kuwabara knelt next to him with noises of concern.

"I managed to change their memories," Hiei whispered to them, his voice losing its mesmerizing tone. "They remember a river drake, yes. But they don't remember it being a threat. I think I half-changed Potter's and Hagrid's minds… I ran out of energy before I could make the complete change."

Yusuke let out a low whistle. "I didn't know you could change people's memories!"

"It's difficult, and it takes a lot of energy, especially with a lot of people."

"But why did you offer to change their memories?" Kuwabara asked.

"They saw too much," Hiei replied. "All those moves we did were too amazing for humans. Besides, I actually enjoyed that whole thing. That drake actually gave me some fun."

"So it wasn't just out of the goodness of your heart?" Yusuke said, raising an eyebrow. Hiei snorted.

"Of course not. Don't be stupid."

"And here I was thinking you were just doing a good deed for once!" Yusuke laughed. "Silly me."

"Yes. Silly you."

"Hey, what's going on?" Malfoy said in sudden confusion. He caught sight of Hiei. "Why are you all wet?" he frowned.

"I fell in the stream," Hiei replied smoothly. "Don't you remember?"

"Uh…yeah… hey wait…" Malfoy's eyes narrowed. He leaned forward and glared into Hiei's eyes. Hiei looked back mutinously.

"You're lying," Malfoy hissed. "I know you are." Hiei said nothing. "Fine, stay silent. But you did something just now, I know it. I just don't know _what _you did." Still Hiei remained infuriatingly quiet.

"You had better watch your step, Jaganshi," Malfoy said in a soft voice that Yusuke and Kuwabara couldn't hear. "Some day, your big pals won't be around to _protect_ you and when that day comes, you had better watch your back."

"Go back to your trolls, Malfoy," Hiei said at last. "They look like lost elephants without you." Malfoy glanced around. Crabbe and Goyle were looking around themselves in bemusion. Malfoy narrowed his eyes at Hiei but stalked off to his cronies. The demon sighed and brushed his wet hair out of his eyes.

"Wow, your hair is longer than I thought," Yusuke said. "It looks sort of good when it's straight and, you know…_normal_ looking."

"Shut up," Hiei snapped. Yusuke laughed that infuriating laugh. Hiei felt two presences behind him and the three of them turned around.

Harry and Hagrid stood before Yusuke, Kuwabara and Hiei with dumbfounded looks.

"I…I don't understand," Hagrid said.

"Don't try to," Hiei responded. "I have a feeling that your job is perfectly safe. Just as long as your classes continue to be as entertaining as they were today." Hagrid blinked in total confusion. Hiei suddenly sneezed and Hagrid frowned.

"Well, ah…why don't you go back up to the castle and change out of those wet clothes?" he suggested, trying to get a handle on things.

"Hn." Hiei wrung his hair out and set off toward the castle. He was already half dry and if he'd been allowed to use his demon powers, he would have been completely dry about five minutes ago.

Hagrid turned back to the rest of the class, which was looking around itself vaguely.

"Well," he said loudly, gaining the students' distant attention, "There's really…no point in continuin' this lesson so er…class dismissed."

The kids looked at each other, shrugged and headed toward the castle, chattering.

"What just happened?" Hagrid said to Harry in confusion, who was numbly standing next to him. Harry struggled to remember; the group had come here into the forest…Yusuke had given Will a piece of meat… and… then Will went back into the river. Several blank patches were scattered across his mind but he did remember a pair of hypnotic red eyes, a voice telling him to forget….forget…forget what? Harry racked his brain. He had a feeling that Hiei had used some sort of spell just now… but where was the wand?... why were Yusuke and Kuwabara covered in scratches and dirt? Why was there blood on his own neck?

Harry felt a hand on his shoulder and looked around.

"Huh?" he said blearily. Ron and Hermione were looking at him, puzzled. Harry shook his head. "Don't ask. Let's just go." And with that, Harry led the way up to the school.

* * *

Dokkou: Woo! That one was fun to write!

Next Chapter: Confrontation: Another Hero and a New Prisoner

Summary: Peeves is back for round two, and Hiei finally loses patience with Malfoy and his gargoyle bodyguards. Will this lead to detention? Expulsion? Or worse: discovery?

* * *


	13. Another Hero and a New Prisoner

_Previously..._

_Harry and Hagrid stood before Yusuke, Kuwabara and Hiei with dumbfounded looks._

_"I…I don't understand," Hagrid said._

_"Don't try to," Hiei responded. "I have a feeling that your job is perfectly safe. Just as long as your classes continue to be as entertaining as they were today." Hagrid blinked in total confusion. Hiei suddenly sneezed and Hagrid frowned._

_"Well, ah…why don't you go back up to the castle and change out of those wet clothes?" he suggested, trying to get a handle on things._

_"Hn." Hiei wrung his hair out and set off toward the castle. He was already half dry and if he'd been allowed to use his demon powers, he would have been completely dry about five minutes ago._

_Hagrid turned back to the rest of the class, which was looking around itself vaguely._

_"Well," he said loudly, gaining the students' distant attention, "There's really…no point in continuin' this lesson so er…class dismissed."_

_The kids looked at each other, shrugged and headed toward the castle, chattering._

_"What just happened?" Hagrid said to Harry in confusion, who was numbly standing next to him. Harry struggled to remember; the group had come here into the forest…Yusuke had given Will a piece of meat… and… then Will went back into the river. Several blank patches were scattered across his mind but he did remember a pair of hypnotic red eyes, a voice telling him to forget….forget…forget what? Harry racked his brain. He had a feeling that Hiei had used some sort of spell just now… but where was the wand?... why were Yusuke and Kuwabara covered in scratches and dirt? Why was there blood on his own neck?_

_Harry felt a hand on his shoulder and looked around._

_"Huh?" he said blearily. Ron and Hermione were looking at him, puzzled. Harry shook his head. "Don't ask. Let's just go." And with that, Harry led the way up to the school._

* * *

Dokkou: Yay!! I'm on fire!! I've written exactly 100 pages in this story!! My longest yet! Oh wait... no never mind. I take that back. Anyway... Release the fangirls!! Mwahahahahaaa!!

* * *

Confrontation; Another Hero and a New Prisoner

Kurama walked rapidly down the hallway and turned a corner, looking around anxiously. He spotted a suit of armor and dove behind it. He held his breath and pressed his cheek to the cold steel back. The suit of armor's helmet creaked around a full one hundred and eighty degrees to look down at Kurama curiously. Kurama put a finger to his lips and hissed softly. The armor turned its head back around just as a group of about fifteen girls came whisking down the hallway.

"Shuichi! Shuichi, where are you!" one girl trilled.

"Shuichi, come back, we want to show you the girl's dormitory," another one pouted. Kurama swallowed.

"Come out, come out, wherever you are, Pooky!" A brunette sang. A blond girl pushed her and said angrily, "Hey, only I can call him that!" The brunette pushed her back and snapped, "He doesn't even like you! How could anyone with that huge _zit_ on your face?" The blond screeched and chased the brunette down the hallway. The other girls followed, obviously thinking they had found their prey.

Kurama waited a full minute before gingerly stepping out from behind the suit of armor.

"Thank you," he breathed to the knight and dashed away. He could have sworn he heard rusty laughter behind him.

Once he was several corridors away Kurama breathed a sigh of relief and slowed to a walk. That had been a close one.

Kurama felt a tap on his shoulder. He jumped, whirled around and almost bumped right into Hiei. The fire demon backpedaled in alarm.

"Did I spook you that bad?" Hiei frowned. Kurama relaxed.

"No, I was just escaping from rabid fangirls. Again," Kurama explained.

"What a coincidence," Hiei grunted.

Kurama cocked his head and said, "Were you running from girls too?"

"They were following me at a distance, actually. I just now gave them the slip." Kurama laughed and Hiei snapped, "It's not funny! They were stalking me for almost an hour! And then they acted like they didn't notice me…"

Kurama chuckled again and said, "It's five thirty. Are you hungry?"

"Hn."

"Alright, let's go. I'm starting to like that Shepard's pie stuff." The two friends started walking toward the Great Hall.

As they rounded a corner, they saw Yusuke, Kuwabara and Harry coming toward them. They were talking in low voices and rubbing their hands.

"Good evening," Kurama said pleasantly to them. The three looked up and put their hands behind their backs. Hiei's eyes narrowed as Kurama said, "How was your detention with Professor Umbridge?"

The three traded glances before Harry said in a dodgy tone, "Alright. She just made us write lines."

"For the rest of the week!" Yusuke snarled furiously.

"What happened to your hands?" Kurama inquired.

"Um…" They shifted uncomfortably. In the blink of an eye, Hiei slid behind them, grabbed Yusuke's hand and held it up to the light. The line _I must not tell lies_ seemed to be scratched into the back of his hand. Hiei let Yusuke's hand drop and backed away next to Kurama.

"What sort of lines?" Kurama said emotionlessly. Yusuke, Kuwabara and Harry groaned and held out their hands; the backs of the right ones had _I must not tell lies _scraped into them. Kurama scowled. "What happened?"

"She had some sort of enchanted quill that writes with its user's blood," Kuwabara said.

Kurama shook his head and said, "That has to be against the rules. Maybe we should tell Dumbledore about this."

"No way!" Harry and Yusuke said together.

"In my long experience, teachers never help you bring down another teacher!" Yusuke spat, punching his fists together. "Especially if they're both scumbags."

"Dumbledore isn't a scumbag," Kurama said reasonably.

"Besides," Harry muttered, "I don't want to give Umbridge the satisfaction of beating us. It doesn't even hurt very much," he added at the look of concern on Kurama's face.

"Yes but how much will it hurt after four more days?" Hiei said in a monotone. Yusuke made a dismissive noise and put his hands behind his head.

"Eh we're tough, we can take it," he said. "We only had to bear it for half an hour. Now come on, I'm starving." And with that he headed off to the Great Hall. He glanced over his shoulder and said, "You guys coming?" Harry and Kuwabara followed him. Hiei and Kurama traded looks before heading after their leader.

* * *

The next two days went by in a peaceful fashion up to the point that Yusuke, Harry and Kuwabara had to go to detention. They were staying with Umbridge for several hours at this point. By the time they came to the Great Hall after the detentions they were all wearing stony expressions and hardly using their right hands at all. The only bright spot in all this was that Ron had been made the keeper of the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

"What the hell is Quidditch?" Yusuke asked when he, Kuwabara, Harry, Ron and Hermione were sitting together at the Gryffindor table during dinner. Hermione's nose was stuck in a book. Ron and Harry looked at Yusuke and Kuwabara in astonishment.

"Only the best sport in the whole world!" Ron said incredulously. "You two honestly haven't heard of Quidditch?" Yusuke and Kuwabara shook their heads.

"What is it?" Kuwabara said impatiently, and Harry and Ron immediately went into a rant about the different players, positions, rules and moves of the game. The three detention prisoners even forgot about the pain in their hands. The longer the explanation went on, the more intrigued Yusuke and Kuwabara looked.

"Aw man, that sounds awesome," Kuwabara moaned when Harry finally paused for breath. "I wish I could fly around on a broomstick." Harry and Ron looked at each other then said to the two tantei, "Well, we're having our first practice on Saturday. Do you want to come watch? Maybe we can even convince Angelina, the new Quidditch captain, to let you fly around on our brooms."

"Seriously?" Kuwabara shouted joyously, causing all the people in the vicinity to stare at him.

"Sure!" Harry laughed. Yusuke and Kuwabara let out noises of elation.

"Oh here comes Kurama!" Hermione said suddenly. They all looked around at the entrance hall.

"Been watching for him, Hermione?" Harry said teasingly as the red head approached. Hermione flushed a light pink and said, "Of course not! I just looked up from my book for a second and I happened to notice him."

"Sure," Yusuke chuckled. His laugh trailed off when Kurama suddenly froze just within the doors with a surprised expression. He didn't move for a long moment then he slowly backed away several steps. Kuwabara frowned as the five watched him.

"That's weird," he said. Two third-year girls started walking into the Great Hall, talking and laughing together. Kurama suddenly darted forward and pushed them both forward. They let out cries which were cut off by a huge crash just behind them. Half the Hall looked up to see a huge barrel of what looked like tar slowly ooze across the floor between the double doors. A flurry of feathers fluttered down from the ceiling a second later.

Kurama blew a feather off his shoulder and looked at the two girls he had just saved from a nasty tar-and-feathering.

"Are you alright?" He said in a soft, polite voice. The girls looked at the black mess then at him and nodded numbly.

"Thank you," one girl said shyly. Kurama gave her a gallant smile.

"You're quite welcome." He walked toward the tar puddle, leaving the girls in a trance. Kurama looked up and said, "Nice try, Mr. Peeves." A furious noise rang out and Peeves suddenly appeared, floating about thirty feet up, glaring down at Kurama.

"You ruined my fun!" Peeves shouted.

"You could have seriously injured someone," Kurama said calmly. "I had to intervene."

"You'd better stop getting me angry or you're going to make a very powerful enemy," Peeves said threateningly.

Kurama arched a delicate eyebrow. "Oh surely you are not speaking of yourself." Peeves let out a howl and pulled his hand back, in which a blue ball was materializing.

Out of nowhere, a blueberry muffin rocketed at Peeves and hit him squarely in the mouth. The poltergeist sputtered and coughed. Kurama looked over his shoulder to see Hiei standing boldly a ways off, alternating two more muffins in his hands.

"Let's not start this again," Hiei droned at the poltergeist. "I sort of wanted to eat these ones." Peeves let out a livid howl and vanished in a puff of red smoke. Hiei glanced at Kurama and the red-head gave him a smile. Hiei tossed him a muffin.

"Well now that you're in my debt, you can assist me with that potions essay on gilderweed poison," Hiei said. Kurama chuckled incredulously.

"Who said I was in your debt?"

"I did. Now where do you actually find the weed? Isn't it somewhere in the Americas?"

"South America actually," Kurama answered as the two walked around the tar lake together and out of the Great Hall, probably to the library. Their conversation faded off and eventually the five spectators at the Gryffindor table could hear no more. Professor McGonagall hurried over and questioned the two girls Kurama had saved. With a wave of her wand the tar lake and feathers disappeared. The Great Hall eventually resumed conversation, talking excitedly about what had just happened.

"You gotta hand it to 'em," said Yusuke as he bit into a roll. "Those two really know how to make an exit."

"That was cool!" Ron said with a grin. "They sure showed Peeves!"

"They always seem to be watching each other's backs," Hermione said thoughtfully.

"Well they are best friends, and no house competition will change that," Kuwabara said. "They don't really let on though. If you just looked at them in a normal situation, you'd think they would just be vague acquaintances."

Harry poked at his Shepard's pie with his fork, lost in thought. Watching Hiei and Kurama take on Peeves together had brought a slight sense of awe to him. They had performed like a well-oiled machine and had obviously known each other for a very long time. Despite the throbbing pain in his hand, Harry smiled to himself. He was becoming more intrigued by these transfer students with each passing day.

* * *

The next day started as normal as all the previous ones. The sun was shining but there was just the hint of a nip in the air. The students were cozy inside the classrooms. One could almost say the atmosphere was cheerful.

But, of course, those feelings can never last long for our heroes.

The Gryffindors and Slytherins emerged from the Potions classroom around midday. Harry was growling to himself while Hermione, Ron, Yusuke and Kuwabara tried to calm him down. As he was bored and had nothing better to do, Hiei came over to the five of them and made his presence known by quietly clearing his throat. The group turned around.

"What happened?" Hiei droned. "I could hear you complaining from the other side of the hallway, Potter."

"Snape gave me detention!" Harry said furiously. "Because I forgot my potions book! I've already got detention with Umbridge but he didn't care! He said I could just do his detention on Saturday!"

Yusuke's eyes widened. "But that's when the Quidditch practice is scheduled!"

"I know!!" Harry moaned angrily. "But of course Snape doesn't care. In fact, he said it was better that I would miss Quidditch because it would be good incentive to remember my books more often."

"I'd lend you my book but I didn't bother bringing it," Yusuke said.

"Heh, me neither," Kuwabara grinned.

"But he didn't give you two a detention for it," Harry grunted irately. "Why?"

"Because Snape has got a thing against you," Ron sighed.

"Well don't _you_ feel special," Hiei droned. Harry let out a growl that subsided into a miserable groan. Hiei looked at him for a long moment, then rooted in his bag and held out his Potions book to Harry. Harry stared at it in confusion.

"You can borrow it," Hiei grunted. "I don't need it. Snape didn't give me any homework."

"Uh…thank…thank you," Harry said numbly as he took the book.

"Hn." And with that informative response, Hiei turned and headed down an adjacent hallway.

"That was weird," Ron said. "Why was Hiei so…nice?"

Hermione smiled. "Maybe he's finally warming up." Yusuke coughed and she looked at him. "What?"

"I highly doubt that," Yusuke said to her. "Honestly I think Hiei gave him the book so that he wouldn't have to listen to Harry whine."

"I can believe that," Ron grumbled. Hermione huffed. Harry started to put Hiei's book in his bad when he blinked.

"Oh God, I don't believe it," he breathed.

"What?" Kuwabara said as he and the others watched Harry root through his bag. Harry held up his own potions book with a disgusted look.

"I had my copy in my bag the whole stupid time!" Yusuke and Kuwabara laughed. "Shut up!" Harry snapped at them.

"Bad luck, Mate," Ron said pityingly. Harry clenched his teeth then forced himself to relax.

"I'll say," he muttered. "I guess I should give Hiei's copy back. I'll be right back. You guys go on to Divination without me." And he darted down the corridor Hiei had traversed earlier.

The others disappeared from view just as Harry heard a voice up ahead. He blinked.

_Malfoy? _

Harry looked around a corridor and his eyes widened.

Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle were facing Hiei menacingly, who was standing stiffly against the wall.

"You make me sick, Jaganshi," Malfoy was sneering.

"The feeling's mutual," Hiei said coldly.

"Why did you help that _mudblood_ back in the Great Hall against Peeves?" Malfoy demanded.

Hiei bristled.

"That's none of your business," he replied in a soft, dangerous voice. But backed up by Crabbe and Goyle, Malfoy was unmoved. Malfoy stepped forward until he and Hiei were standing chest to chest. Seeing as Malfoy was at least five inches taller than Hiei, this was especially intimidating. At least to Harry.

"You're a traitor," Malfoy whispered. "How did you end up in the superior house of Slytherin? If you help mudbloods, you're no better than mudbloods yourself."

"So what does that make you?" Hiei said in a mock thoughtful voice. "A dungblood?"

Malfoy bared his teeth. "How _dare _you! I come from the noble pureblood family of Malfoy! My pure blood goes back for centuries! But you…what are you descended from? Obviously not a pureblood family. I'd know if you were, even if you were from a foreign country." Malfoy made a disgusted noise. "Clearly you have as much scum flowing through your veins as that pathetic excuse for a wizard, Granger."

Hiei's eyes narrowed. "If I had to choose between being a pureblood imbecile like you or a half-blood like Granger, I'd choose Granger."

Malfoy's mouth twisted in fury. "Why you—"

"In fact," Hiei snarled, shoving on Malfoy's chest and causing Crabbe and Goyle to growl, "I am a half blood but both halves are twice as good as your pathetic heritage! I am the unity between two opposing forces of ice and fire, and that is far better than being part of a race that, from what I hear, is dying out fast. Face it_, Draco_, your pureblood mania is going to crumple into dust soon."

"You just crossed the line, Jaganshi," Malfoy said murderously. He backed up a step and snapped, "Make him regret ever opening his dirty mouth."

And Crabbe and Goyle lunged. Harry took an automatic step forward, pulling his wand out as he did so but he knew he wouldn't make it in time.

Crabbe and Goyle's two fists connected with Hiei's cheek and stomach with loud thumps that made Harry flinch. Hiei slammed back against the wall and slid down a little. Harry bit his lip. What could he do? He couldn't take on Crabbe and Goyle, but if he went away for help, Hiei could get seriously—

His thoughts were interrupted when a low, mocking laugh came from Hiei.

"Are you insane?" Malfoy said with a blink. Hiei looked up at him with a smirk. He straightened and wiped his cheek.

"You didn't even break the skin," he said contemptuously. "I only let you hit me to gage how hard you could punch." Crabbe and Goyle looked at him in confusion, obviously not understanding why their victim wasn't showing any signs of pain or even discomfort. "And you punch like a couple of insects," Hiei added smugly. Crabbe and Goyle roared angrily; they understood a simple insult at least. They both leaped forward and drew their fists back. In one fluid movement, Hiei lifted his arms and caught both of their fists at once.

"Huh?" Crabbe said. Hiei smiled nastily and shoved them both back. Crabbe and Goyle stumbled back into their leader.

"Watch it!" Malfoy snapped, sidestepping the two hulks. "Hurry up and get him!" Crabbe and Goyle tried again, Crabbe with a punch, Goyle with a kick. Hiei dodged Crabbe's punch, which ended up flying against the wall, and leaped at least three feet above Goyle's kick, who slid on the floor almost into the splits. He and Crabbe howled in pain.

Hiei did a flip into the middle of the hallway; in the same movement he pivoted and faced his opponents.

"Come on, don't tell me that's all you've got," he said coldly. To their credit, Crabbe and Goyle rushed him one more time. Hiei ducked down and slammed his fists into both their stomachs at the same time. He straightened, spun in a circle and gave them both a spinning kick to the face. They both stumbled back but before they could fall over, Hiei darted behind them and put his hands between their shoulders to steady them. Crabbe and Goyle dizzily turned around to face him. Hiei jumped up, pushed off the wall with his hands and kicked Crabbe and Goyle square in the chests. They went sailing back and skidded on their rears. Hiei folded his arms.

"Pathetic," he sniffed. Then he looked around at Malfoy, who was gaping. Malfoy backed away, but Hiei said dangerously, "Where do you think you're going?" In something close to a blur, he flashed across the hall and grabbed the neck of Malfoy's black robe. Malfoy whimpered as he stared into the crimson eyes, which had developed a bloodthirsty light.

"You say you're a pureblood?" Hiei said softly. He jerked on Malfoy's robe and Malfoy squeaked pitifully. "How about I rip you open and see just how pure your blood is?"

"Please don't hurt me!" Malfoy cried, his eyes filming over.

Hiei smirked evilly and drew his fist back. "Too late for begging, ningen scum."

Harry gasped and was about to yell, "No, Hiei, don't!" when a different, very cold voice rang out:

"Jaganshi. If you do not place Malfoy down I will be forced to blast a hole in your head." Harry, Crabbe, Goyle, Malfoy and Hiei looked around to see Professor Snape standing at the other end of the hallway, his wand pointed at Hiei's back. For once in his life, Harry was glad to see Snape.

"Did you not hear me?" Snape said softly, dangerously. "Put Mr. Malfoy down." Hiei blinked and his eyes lost their bloodthirsty light. He stiffly released Malfoy's robe. Malfoy fell to the floor with a squeak.

"Fighting, Mr. Jaganshi?" Snape drawled, lowering his wand. "Dear dear…"

Malfoy finally found his voice. "He attacked us, Professor!"

"Incorrect," Hiei said in a monotone. "I was defending myself when your cronies attacked _me_." Snape's eyebrow arched up. He looked over at Crabbe and Goyle, who were looking very rumpled, shocked, and a bit scratched up, but otherwise unharmed.

"He threatened me, Professor!" Malfoy cried, pointing at Hiei. "We met him in the hallway and started talking about purebloods and he just _insulted_ my family! I tried to argue but then he attacked Crabbe and Goyle and he was about to rip me open when you showed up, Sir!"

"I see," Snape said softly.

"You're a liar!" Hiei snarled at Malfoy.

"Regardless, Jaganshi, I did see you assaulting Mr. Malfoy and Misters Crabbe and Goyle have obviously been in a tussle that I highly doubt was with each other." Snape's black eyes narrowed. "Detention, Mr. Jaganshi."

Hiei bared his teeth and Malfoy cried, "Professor he was really going to try to kill me! A few days of detention isn't going to—"

"Mr. Malfoy, enough," Snape said. "I would give you and Misters Crabbe and Goyle detentions as well if I had any proof that you indeed goaded Jaganshi into fighting."

Harry leaned against the wall as he listened. He could provide that proof. But knowing Snape, he'd end up with even more detention. He squeezed his eyes shut.

"Considering your _specific_ restrictions for fighting at this school, Jaganshi, I'm giving you five days of detention," Snape continued. "In fact, I'm tempted to give you even more for—"

"Malfoy is lying, Professor," a voice said. Snape, Crabbe, Goyle, Malfoy and Hiei turned their heads as Harry stepped out into the open with a frown. "I saw the whole thing," Harry went on as Malfoy's face went a pasty white. "Malfoy cornered Hiei and started insulting him and after Hiei insulted him back, Malfoy ordered Crabbe and Goyle to attack Hiei and—"

"And," Snape intervened coldly, "Why did you not come get me as soon as you saw this event begin to unfold?"

"Well, I…"

"Too cowardly, Potter?"

"No!" Harry said fiercely.

"Well you get detention for five days as well_ in addition to_ the two days of detention I issued you earlier."

Harry's mouth fell open. "But—but—professor—"

"Enough," Snape snapped. "You have all wasted enough time here. Get to your classes before I assign you all extra homework." Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle glared at Hiei and Harry as they shuffled away to their next class. "You two get moving," Snape said coldly to Hiei and Harry, and with that he swept back to his potions room with a swish of his cape.

Hiei and Harry were left alone in the hallway. Harry let out a long sigh, picked up Hiei's bag and held it out to the demon. Hiei looked at it, then up at Harry with an expressionless face.

"You dropped this," Harry muttered. Hiei took the bag and swung it over his shoulder.

"Why did you do that?" Hiei said softly. "You must have known that the truth wouldn't have changed anything."

"I know," Harry said. "But I couldn't bear just standing there and not helping you when I had the screaming chance to." Hiei was silent. Then…

"I'm going to be late for History of Magic class," Hiei said stiffly. And without another word he spun on his heel and stalked out of the corridor.

Harry sighed and followed him, thinking unhappily of the dozens of stairs he would have to climb to reach the Divination Tower.

* * *

"WHAT?!" Ron shouted as Harry dropped his head onto the table with a miserable sigh. "Snape gave you five MORE days of detention?! A whole _week?_! I can't freaking believe this!!"

"_You_ can't believe this?" Harry muttered. "How do you think I feel?"

"Lousy?" Hermione guessed sympathetically. Harry just groaned. The three were sitting together at the Gryffindor table. It was the start of dinner. Harry didn't feel like eating anything even though he knew he should; he still had Umbridge's detention to do in just a few minutes along with Yusuke and Kuwabara.

Harry let out a groan and hit his forehead on the table again.

"You're going to give yourself another scar if you keep doing that," Hermione informed him. Harry straightened and glared at her.

"You should talk to McGonagall!" said Ron, punching his hands together. "With Snape's new detentions, you probably won't get any Quidditch practices in before the first game, and she knows how important practices are. She'll intervene on your behalf!"

"Yeah, sure," Harry said. He highly doubted McGonagall would interfere with another teacher's punishment, even if it was for her Quidditch team's star player.

Harry stood up.

"I'm gonna go do my detention for Umbridge," he muttered. "See you guys later." And he left the Great Hall.

Harry took his time walking down the halls. He was only a couple of corridors away from Umbridge's room when he saw Professor McGonagall walking toward him carrying a pile of books. Harry remembered Ron's suggestion and sighed. It was worth a try.

"Professor, excuse me," Harry said. Professor McGonagall turned around and said impatiently, "What is it, Potter? Can't you see I'm busy?"

"Sorry, Professor," Harry said, "It's just…well Snape gave me seven days of detention earlier today, but since I already have detention with Professor Umbridge for the rest of the week, can you maybe convince Sna—Professor Snape to take back those detentions? I really need that time to practice Quidditch with the team, especially since Ron is our new keeper and needs a lot of practice and help…" he trailed off hopefully.

McGonagall repositioned her books and said, "Your request has come too late, Potter."

"Oh please, Professor, I'll make up the time later, I promise, I—wait—" Harry blinked in confusion. "What do you mean I'm too late?"

"Your detentions were terminated just an hour ago," Professor McGonagall said.

"How?" Harry said in shock.

"Well," said McGonagall, "Hiei confronted Professor Snape and I and informed us that you had nothing to do with what had happened with Misters Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle. He claimed sole responsibility for their mishap. Professor Snape wasn't willing to let the detentions to slide, so Hiei offered to take on your detentions for you. He was persistent, so Professor Snape and I gave in, in the end."

"So," Harry said numbly, "Hiei is doing twelve days of detention?"

"No." replied Professor McGonagall. "Because it was a rather bold and valiant sacrifice, we cut it down to only two additional days." Harry could only look at her, speechless.

"Do close your mouth, Potter, you look like a suffocating cod," McGonagall snapped, and she swept past him. "Besides, don't you have a detention with Professor Umbridge right now? It would not be wise to be late."

"Um…yes Professor." Harry turned and headed to Umbridge's classroom. Could McGonagall be playing some sort of joke on him? Had Hiei really?... no, it was impossible!...why would he?...

Harry shook his head when he realized he was standing in front of Umbridge's door. Maybe what all the newspapers were saying about him were right; maybe he was going crazy. At the moment, he honestly couldn't disagree with them.

* * *

Dokkou: (thoughtful) What an odd act of heroism. In case you're all wondering, no, Hiei is not softening up.

Hiei took Harry's detentions because his weird honor code states that he had to pay Harry back for assisting him (or attempting to). He didn't want to be in Harry's debt so he took the detentions, reasoning that they couldn't be too difficult anyway. Hahahahaaaa!! Fool! Yeah right!!...

Next Chapter: Welcome to the Forbidden Forest

Summary: Harry, Kuwabara, Yusuke and Hiei have been assigned to Hagrid for the rest of their detentions. What is the half-giant going to make them do? Well seeing as it's HIM, of course our heroes are in for a fun-filled adventure in the Forbidden Forest! What could be better than hunting a rogue drake, being viciously attacked and then killed by a shadowy monster??

Ask Yusuke.

Tee Hee! I'm evil! :3

* * *


	14. Welcome to the Forbidden Forest

_Previously…_

_"Your detention was terminated just an hour ago," Professor McGonagall said. _

_"How?" Harry said in surprise._

_"Well," said McGonagall, "Hiei confronted Professor Snape and I and informed us that you had nothing to do with what had happened with Misters Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle. Professor Snape wasn't willing to let the detentions to slide, so Hiei offered to take on your detentions for you. He was persistent, so Professor Snape and I gave in, in the end."_

_"So," Harry said numbly, "Hiei is doing ten days of detention?"_

_"No," replied Professor McGonagall. "Because it was a rather bold and valiant sacrifice, we cut it down to only two additional days." Harry could only look at her, speechless._

_"Do close your mouth, Potter, you look like a suffocating cod," McGonagall snapped, and she swept past him. "Besides, don't you have a detention with Professor Umbridge right now? It would not be wise to be late."_

_"Um…yes Professor." Harry turned and headed to Umbridge's classroom. Could McGonagall be playing some sort of joke on him? Had Hiei really?... no, it was impossible!...why would he?..._

_Harry shook his head when he realized he was standing in front of Umbridge's door. Maybe what all the newspapers were saying about him were right; maybe he was going crazy. At the moment, he honestly couldn't disagree with them._

* * *

Dokkou: Okay, here's where things get nasty. Prepare yourselves...FOR DESTRUCTION!! AND THE END OF THE HUMAN RACE!! I SHALL EAT YOUR BRAINS!! NONE CAN ESCAPE THE WRATH OF-- wait... (stares at script) oh wait this is a later chapter (sweatdrop) ... Ha!! haha...ha... awkward...

I'm drugged up!! On Invader Zim!! ZIIIIIIIIMMM!! HAHAHAHAAAA!! OH THE INSANITY!! **IT'S DELICIOUS!!** (runs in a happy psycho circle)

* * *

New Punishment: Welcome to the Forbidden Forest

Thursday came in a burst of sunshine and twittering birds. Too bad all the students were stuck inside. Albeit, breakfast was enjoyable, especially for Kurama.

Midway through a bowl of cereal the owls came streaming into the Great Hall and one bright-colored owl disengaged from the flock and dove down at Kurama. The fox demon looked up and pulled his cereal bowl away just in time before a tiny yellow owl landed hard on the table.

"Ohhh! An emopygmy owl!" Hermione squealed excitedly.

"His name is Brummer," Kurama smiled at her. The owl hopped onto his shoulder and let out a happy and rather satisfied hoot. There was a large envelope tied to his leg.

"Oh? For me?" Kurama said curiously. He pulled the envelope off the owl's leg and scanned the front. A delighted smile spread over his face and Brummer glowed a bright yellow.

"It's from my mother," Kurama said.

"What's it say?" Yusuke said curiously through a mouthful of bagel and cream cheese.

"Tell me later," Ron said, his eyes locked on something across the hall. He grabbed a garlic-and onion bagel and stood up.

"Ron where are you…?" Hermione began. Then she followed Ron's gaze to Hiei, who had just entered the hall. "Oh Ron you're not serious…" She let out an annoyed huff as Ron ignored her and swept off.

Kurama delicately slit the envelope open and smiled.

"Sooo?" Kuwabara said expectantly.

"Oh, just fussy mother stuff," Kurama responded, starting to put the letter in his bag. In a flash, Yusuke swiped it out of his hand and read out loud with a grin, "Dear Shuichi, I hope you're having fun at your college trial. Are you making any friends? Are you eating right? Are the grounds very big? How does everyone treat you? Are you making sure you're changing your underwear every—" In a blur the letter disappeared out of his hand and in the same second something bashed into his head and sent him face-first into Kurama's cereal bowl.

"You really should be more careful, Yusuke," Kurama smiled, slipping the letter into his bag. Brummer hooted cheerfully from the fox demon's shoulder. Hermione and Kuwabara were shaking from suppressed giggles. Yusuke slowly pulled his face out of the bowl and glared at Kurama. The intimidation was ruined by the cheerios plastered all over his face. Kuwabara couldn't hold back his laughter and he finally cracked up. Yusuke pounced on him with a snarl.

There was a gagging noise behind Hermione. She and everyone else looked around to see Ron standing behind her. He had a very large, whole, garlic-and-onion bagel shoved into his mouth and his flaming red hair had been doused with what looked like cranberry juice.

"So, how did it go?" Harry said casually, trying desperately not to explode into laughter. Ron pulled hard on the bagel and it finally came out with a spray of crumbs.

"Hiei doesn't like garlic," Ron said in a raspy, crumb-filled warble.

"Are you sure you weren't just too insistent?" Hermione said shrewdly.

"Of course not!" Ron said, highly affronted as he grabbed a napkin and mopped his hair. "It's not like I shoved it in his face!" Hermione stared at him. Ron ducked his head and muttered, "Well I didn't _shove it in his mouth_…"

By this time, most of the owls had left but suddenly one more owl swooped into the Hall.

"Hedwig?" Harry said in surprise as the snowy white owl settled on the table before him. Hedwig held out her leg, to which a piece of parchment was tied. Harry removed the parchment and Hedwig hooted once then took flight out of the Hall.

"What's it say?" Ron said curiously, looking over Harry's shoulder.

"It's from Professor McGonagall," Harry said to his audience. Out loud he read, "'Harry Potter, Yusuke Urameshi, Kazuma Kuwabara, and Hiei Jaganshi are to report to Professor Hagrid's hut at 7:30 tonight to fulfill the remainder of their detentions.'" Harry looked at all his friends curiously.

"We're not going to Umbridge!" Kuwabara said with a wide grin. "Awesome!"

Yusuke rubbed his chin. "But why Hagrid?" he said pensively. Harry shrugged.

"Dunno, but I bet it will be way better than Umbridge."

"Anything is better than Umbridge," said Ron, rolling his eyes.

Oh how wrong he was.

* * *

"Oh man, we're late," Harry panted as he, Yusuke and Kuwabara ran toward the wooden cabin on the edge of the forest. It was a little past 7:30 p.m. and it was already sunset.

Yusuke effortlessly pulled up next to the young wizard.

"So what? Who cares if we're ten little minutes late?" he said dismissively.

"Hagrid is my friend," Harry replied breathlessly. "I can't be late for him. I _knew_ I shouldn't have eaten that second helping of pie…"

The three at last arrived at the cabin where they could see two figures waiting. Hiei was kicking at rocks and Hagrid was sitting on the front porch, softly playing a flute. Even sitting, he made Hiei look especially small.

"Finally," Hiei grunted without looking around as Harry, Kuwabara and Yusuke slowed to a stop before them. Hagrid put his flute down and said, "There ya are! I was wonderin' if you three would even show up."

"Sorry, Hagrid, really," Harry apologized.

"Harry insisted on pigging out first," Yusuke grinned. Harry elbowed him in the stomach. Yusuke snickered then pulled an innocent upward expression. Hagrid hauled himself to his feet.

"Why are we doing detention with you?" Kuwabara asked curiously.

" 'Cause I requested it," Hagrid replied. "I asked McGonagall if she could get you four out of Professors Snape and Umbridge's company an' into mine an' she arranged it. I asked yeh here because I can't find hide nor hair o' William, an' I figured I would get you four ter help."

"You want us to find Will?" Harry said, wide-eyed. "Why?"

"Well apparently he got spooked or sommat, because he won' come out of the water even If I toss in half a carcass," Hagrid said with a frown. "I feel like I know what spooked him but I just can't remember what…" He stroked his beard and Yusuke and Kuwabara traded smirks.

"Anyway," Hagrid went on, "I got you down here, Harry, because I understand that Professor Umbridge's punishment is pretty harsh, or so I've heard, and because I know you'll help me in my hour of need." He smiled at Harry who returned his smile weakly. "I requested Yusuke an' Kuwabara because, well…. I faintly remember them helpin' out with Will the other day durin' class…. I remember him getting rowdy and you two stepped in to stop him."

"That sounds about right," Kuwabara said.

Hagrid leaned over and smiled fondly at Hiei. "And you I requested because of what yeh did for Harry. I heard about the run-in with Malfoy…" here he paused to scowl… "and also about how yeh took Harry's detentions for him. Very noble for a Slyth—er, a new kid."

"Hn."

Hagrid straightened up and looked proudly at the group behind him. "So whaddya say? Will yeh help me find my little William?" Yusuke and Kuwabara glanced at each other uneasily, then at the pitch black forest in front of them.

"Of course, if you're scared, yeh can go back and do your detention with Professor Umbridge," Hagrid said lightly as he scratched his hairy chin.

"We'll take the lizard," Yusuke said immediately. Hagrid let out a satisfied grunt and stumped into his cabin. He came back out with a giant swinging lantern.

"Isn't Fang coming?" Harry asked.

"Nah," Hagrid frowned. "It was weird. Right when Hiei showed up, Fang got all jittery and whiny and hid in his bed."

"Hmm, he must have sensed something evil," Yusuke said with an innocent look at Hiei. The fire apparition gave him an ugly look.

"The only evil thing here is your face," Hiei sniffed.

"Yeah. Scaring little kids with it is so much fun," Yusuke grinned. He pulled the corners of his mouth down and stuck out his tongue at Hiei. "Bleh leh leh leh!"

"...Detective, I suggest you put that thing away before it sticks out permanently."

Yusuke sucked in his tongue with a loud slurp.

"Alright you lot, enough messing around," Hagrid said. "Let's go find Will." And he stumped off into the Forbidden Forest, lantern swinging eerily.

"Finally," Hiei said with a note of eagerness, and he swept off after the half-giant. Harry, Yusuke and Kuwabara took one last look at the castle and its cheerily glowing windows before turning and heading after the groundskeeper with synchronized sighs.

From nearly the first step into the forest, the shadows seemed to close in around the group and threaten to strangle them. Yusuke, Kuwabara and Harry looked warily at the darkness around them as they trailed after the half-giant and his light.

Hiei walked with a suspicious spring in his step. He scanned the dark trees around him with more curiosity than nervousness and he looked more energetic than anyone had seen him since he had come to Hogwarts. He took a deep breath and reveled in the clear, moist, cool air. At last he was back where he belonged; in a dark forest untouched by human influence. The farther in they walked, the more he longed to break away and lope through the tall trees by himself.

"How are we going to find Will?" Harry sighed after about ten minutes of walking. "Isn't he in a stream somewhere?"

"Nah," Hagrid said, stepping on a fallen sapling and snapping it in half. "River drakes, at least young ones, spend the night on land because the water is too cold and there are quite a few marine animals that would love a midnight snack of drake flesh."

"What animal would be stupid enough to take a bite out of something _twelve feet long?_" Yusuke said incredulously.

"You'd be surprised," Hagrid said mildly. "Now Will likes to hang out around this area here. I've checked here before, but he might have come back between then and now. Therefore…" he turned and faced the group. Harry winced and thought, _Please don't say we should split up..._

"I think it would be best if we split up," Hagrid said, right on cue. Harry heaved a mental sigh. "Now, Hiei and Yusuke I think you two should go together because you both seem like you can take care of yourselves. Harry, Kuwabara, you stay with me."

"Hey!" Kuwabara shouted at Hagrid. "Are you sayin' I can't take care of myself?!"

"Well, if you'd rather go by yourself," Hagrid trailed off just as the mournful howl of some night creature floated around the trees. A shiver went up Kuwabara's spine and he said stiffly, "Well, maybe I should stay with you guys and protect you from… you know… stuff."

"Yeah," Yusuke said solemnly, "Dirt… flowers… trees… let's not forget those vicious squirrels…"

"Shut up, Urameshi."

"Alrighty then," Hagrid said, "The three of us will go down this path…" he pointed to an almost indistinguishable path in the undergrowth "…and you two go that way." Yusuke couldn't even make out the path he was pointing at.

"If yeh find Will or any recent sign of him, send up green sparks. If you get yourselves into trouble, send up red sparks."

As Harry, Yusuke and Kuwabara drew their wands and lit them with the Lumos spell, Hiei said, "Are you quite sure that drake isn't going to attack us?"

"Of course not!" Hagrid said with a wave of his hand. "Will's as gentle as a horse! Hm, I could swear I've said that before…"

"Even if we accidentally sneak up on him while he's sleeping?" Hiei said shrewdly.

"No, no…no."

"Hn. Fine. Let's go, Detective." And with that, Hiei fearlessly trudged off in between the dark trees.

"He's an eager one," Hagrid observed cheerily.

"Yeah, that's what scares me," Yusuke muttered before hurrying after the demon with his wand held high. He caught up with Hiei in a matter of seconds and heard Hagrid, Harry and Kuwabara crashing off in the opposite direction.

"Okay," he said with mock enthusiasm, "Let's go find a flesh-eating gecko!"

* * *

Harry and Kuwabara didn't have any trouble keeping up with Hagrid. The half-giant easily cleared a path through the underbrush for his followers. They were trying to follow Hagrid's directions of looking for signs of Will, but Harry and Kuwabara didn't have a clue as to what a sign of a giant lizard would be. Even if the drake himself was standing ten feet away they wouldn't see him in the darkness anyway. Hagrid however was turning his shaggy from side to side, searching avidly. Kuwabara and Harry just focused all their attention with keeping up with his giant strides.

After nearly ten minutes of walking, Hagrid froze and said hoarsely, "Stop." Harry and Kuwabara stopped walking.

"What is it?" Harry asked as Hagrid bent down. "Did you find a sign of Will?"

"No," Hagrid said, and there was something in his voice that sent a chill up Harry's spine. He and Kuwabara peeked from either side of Hagrid at the thing he was examining.

Pressed in the mud and covered slightly by leaves was what looked like a footprint, but it was the oddest footprint any of them had seen. It had three extremely long toes that ended in very sharp and very long claws. A fourth toe pointed directly backward. The toes were all extremely thin. They could have been twig imprints if they weren't so precisely placed. It was vaguely birdlike.

"What made that?" Kuwabara said nervously.

"I… I don't know," Hagrid said softly. "I've never seen anything like it in this forest, which means…" he stood up with a dark look. "It doesn't belong here." He glanced at Harry and Kuwabara who were both wearing fearful expressions. "Oh now now," Hagrid said. "Listen… this is groundskeeper business, so how about we join up with Yusuke and Hiei and you all go back up to the castle."

"By ourselves?" Kuwabara said in a slightly squeaky voice.

"Of course not! I'll guide yeh through. I just hope that…" he broke off as a light suddenly shone above them. The three looked up and saw a faint flurry of blood-red sparks shimmering through the dark trees.

"Oh no," Hagrid said weakly.

* * *

"Let's go find a flesh-eating gecko!" Yusuke said.

"Do let's," Hiei said, craning his neck back to look up at the black canopy above them. Yusuke's wand was the only light around them. Like a natural being of the forest, Hiei fluidly slithered through the underbrush, leaving only waving fronds in his wake. He sighed as Yusuke crashed through the brush behind him, leaving considerably more in his wake than waving fronds.

"Hiei, why didn't you light your wand?" Yusuke asked.

"I don't need to. I can see fine in the dark," Hiei replied.

"But I can't," Yusuke said in a whiny voice.

"Don't tell me the great Spirit Detective is scared," Hiei mocked.

"I'm not scared! I'm just saying this will go a lot faster if we have two lights."

"Hn. Then here." Hiei pulled his wand out of his robe and shoved it into Yusuke's hand.

"That's not really what I was getting at," Yusuke sweatdropped.

"Too bad. Improvise." He set off through the trees again. Yusuke grudgingly muttered the light spell and Hiei's black wand reluctantly lit up.

Yusuke had no idea where they were going, but Hiei was moving a peculiar sense of purpose. Yusuke gave up and simply followed after the demon. Eventually they came to the edge of a clearing. Hiei held out his arm and Yusuke stopped.

"What?" Yusuke said. Hiei put a finger to his lips and pointed. Yusuke raised the wands and squinted into the darkness.

A dark mound rose before them in the middle of the clearing. It had a very long tail and four legs which were stretched out straight. The thing was lying on its side. Hiei lightly stepped out of the bushes and approached the mound. Yusuke heard a sharp intake of breath.

"What? What is it? Is it Will?" he said quickly.

"Come. Bring the light." Yusuke stumbled out of the bushes and came over curiously. He gasped and took a fast step back.

Will was lying before them on his side, his flesh ripped off revealing bloody white ribs. One eye was missing, obviously from a brutal slash, and he was covered in bite marks. A few flies were buzzing around him, confirming Hiei and Yusuke's suspicions: he was dead.

Yusuke clenched his fists around the wands.

"What…the… hell…" he said weakly. Hiei gazed at the drake, his whole face stony. Yusuke began to take a step back when a chill crept over him. At the same time, Hiei grabbed his arm.

"Did you feel that?" Hiei said sharply.

"Yeah," Yusuke said, looking around the dark trees warily. "Something is here. Something alive."

The two waited for a long silent minute, back to back, staring into the dark void around them.

"I'm going to check it out," Hiei said quietly. "I'll be right back."

"Be careful," Yusuke said. He felt the pressure of Hiei's back leave him and he was left alone. He heard the demon leap into a tree and dart away.

Yusuke repositioned the wands and stuck his index finger out. There; now he felt better armed than with a couple of glowsticks.

A soft noise reached his ears; the gentle snap of a twig.

"Hiei?" Yusuke turned his head—

and his vision was filled with the image of two enormous, bulging green eyes and a perfectly circular mouth too wide and too full of teeth to be natural. Yusuke opened his mouth to yell but then he felt the teeth savagely sink into his neck and his voice seemed to leak out through the punctures. He vaguely felt himself fall to the ground and felt the creature pin him down. The teeth pulled free of his flesh and hovered above his head. There had to be more than a hundred: three rows on both jaws. Yusuke fought the sudden shaking that was coming over him and raised the wand in his hand; he'd dropped the other one without realizing it. Red sparks streamed out of the tip and skyrocketed up into the night sky. The giant mouth let out a hiss and drew back in alarm. Then it started to come forward again…it was going in and out of focus… someone was calling his name… and then darkness finally walloped him over the head and he thought no more.

* * *

Hiei's head snapped up and he saw the red sparks glimmering faintly only a short ways away. Yusuke was in big trouble.

_Damn!! _Hiei cursed himself furiously. He shot like a bullet across the tree branch and burst into the clearing.

He immediately spotted Yusuke, pinned down by… by… oh God what_ was_ it? The creature was a mass of darkness, humpbacked, with a huge chest and tiny waist, long skeletal arms and legs and a whip-like tail.

He didn't even need to think. Hiei grabbed a branch off the ground, snapped it diagonally so that it made a very sharp point and blurred across the clearing at the creature. As Hiei leaped over Will's dead body, the creature looked up, turning a massive and very wide pair of walleyed green eyes at him. It let out a hiss and leaped off Yusuke into the shadows of the canopy above. Hiei hurled the tree branch like a javelin at it but the creature seemed to vanish into the darkness. The branch went clear through a tree trunk with a loud splintering noise.

Hiei blurred over and knelt next to the Spirit Detective, a hint of worry gnawing at his heart. Yusuke was half-curled up, shuddering and twitching. His eyes were shut tight and he was covered in a cold sweat. Hiei pushed on his shoulder anxiously.

"Yusuke! Yusuke! Wake up! Can you hear me? Yusuke!!" Hiei got no answer. He clenched and unclenched his hands, for once at a loss of what to do. Medical stuff was Kurama's area of expertise, not his! Hiei gently lifted one of Yusuke's eyelids; his eye was clouded and distant, obviously unconscious. But from what? What could possibly incapacitate someone as strong as the Spirit Detective so quickly?

Hiei turned Yusuke's head and that was when he saw it: a perfect circle of puncture marks on the side of the Spirit Detective's throat.

_Poison. That thing poisoned Yusuke! _Hiei took a deep breath, remembering how to take care of poisoning and hating it. But he had to do it. The poisoning could be fatal.

Hiei lifted Yusuke's torso up, opened his jaws wide revealing extremely sharp fangs, and bit down on Yusuke's throat. He sucked hard and his tongue tingled as poison-rich blood filled his mouth.

* * *

"The sparks came from here!" Kuwabara shouted. Harry and Hagrid were close behind him as he ran through the bushes. The three burst into a clearing and Kuwabara shouted, "Urameshi! We're here! What's hap—pen—" he trailed off with a gagging noise. A wave of nausea rolled over Harry.

A huge dead body was slumped to their left, bleeding all over the ground. But even more horrific was Yusuke, laying unconscious. Hiei had him in his arms with his teeth sunk in Yusuke's neck and was obviously sucking the human's blood.

Harry stumbled back, forcing down bile. _Ron was right,_ he thought in horror, _Hiei really is a vampire!!_

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING TO YUSUKE!?" Kuwabara screamed. "GET OFF HIM!!" he started running forward, his fist glowing orange. Hiei raised his head and spat out a mouthful of blood in a long arch. It spattered right where Kuwabara was about to step, steaming and hissing like acid. Kuwabara froze, his eyes wide.

"Yusuke was poisoned," Hiei said swiftly. "I'm sucking the poison out before it spreads through him and he dies so** shut up and let me concentrate!**_"_ He sank his teeth in again and drew out more blood. Harry clapped a hand over his mouth.

Hagrid was the first to realize the scene was not what it seemed and he knelt next to Hiei and Yusuke.

"What happened?" he said breathlessly. "What poisoned Yusuke?" Hiei lifted his head, spat out more blood and said, "I don't know. We split up--I saw red sparks--by the time I got back I saw some sort of shadow creature above Yusuke but before I could do anything it escaped. I think we interrupted its meal." He bit down again.

"Meal?" Hagrid said with a blink. Without changing position, Hiei pointed to the dead body on the other side of the clearing. Hagrid looked over at it and the reality sunk in for the first time. The half-giant let out a mournful howl and ran over to the drake.

"WILL!!" He wailed. "WIIIILL!! NOOO!" He burst into tears and collapsed to his knees beside the river drake's body. Harry and Kuwabara stood together, too confused to speak or move.

"There," Hiei said breathlessly spitting out a small mouthful of blood. The red liquid was dripping down from the corner of his mouth. "I think I got most of the poison out." Harry and Kuwabara knelt next to Yusuke.

The Spirit Detective was no longer twitching. He lay utterly still, except for the faint rise and fall of his chest.

"You did get all of it, didn't you?" Harry said nervously. Hiei wiped his mouth.

"No, but nothing to worry about," he said with an odd tone.

"Are you sure?" Kuwabara swallowed.

"Yes," Hiei said in a strained, slurred voice. "It's just a...paralyzing poison. It'll...wear off soon. Oh my tongue… I can't feel...my tongue…" He swayed dizzily.

"Hagrid," Harry cried, "Hagrid we need your help!"

The half-giant blearily looked up from the drake's body and around at the four teenagers. "What?" he said in a pained voice.

"Oh forget it!" Kuwabara snapped. "If you won't help, I will!" he grabbed Yusuke and wrapped the Spirit Detective's arms around his neck. "Come on, you guys, we're getting out of here," Kuwabara said fiercely.

"And you... know the way out of here?" Harry said dryly.

Kuwabara opened his mouth wide. "Aaaauuuh….no!" Hiei and Harry sweatdropped.

"Hagird, please!" Harry tried again. "We can't help Will, but we _can_ help Yusuke! If he doesn't get to the hospital wing soon he could be in serious trouble!"

Hagrid shook himself and stood up. His eyes were clouded with grief but there was also a spark of determination.

"Right," he said in a shaky voice. "Right, Yusuke… I can take care of…of Will later." He stumped over, grabbed Yusuke from Kuwabara and held him effortlessly in his arms bridal-style.

"Follow me," Hagrid said, and hurried through the trees. Hiei and Kuwabara quickly headed after him. Harry ran and grabbed the two wands Yusuke had dropped and hurried after them.

The trek back through the forest seemed to take hours. Kuwabara and Harry couldn't stop looking at Yusuke's limp body, both wondering if the poison really was harmless at this point or still fatal. At long last they came out of the trees and Hagrid's hut came into view. Fang was barking madly from inside. Hagrid ignored his home and led the procession right into the castle.

The hallways were eerily empty. Everyone had gone to their dormitories for the night. The group was glad; the last thing they wanted right now was attention.

Hagrid burst into the hospital wing, causing Madame Pomfrey to cry out in surprise.

"Professor Hagrid! What on earth!" she exclaimed. She spotted Yusuke's unconscious form in his arms and she gasped softly. "What's happened?"

"Yusuke's been poisoned," Harry explained breathlessly as Hagrid gently lay the Spirit Detective on one of the beds.

"Poisoned!?" Madame Pomfrey cried. She pulled out her wand with a wave and a stethoscope magically appeared. She inserted it into her ears and pressed the end to Yusuke's heart.

"Well he's alive at least," she said. She carefully turned his head and let out a noise of alarm at the circular bite marks on his neck. "Good lord! What made this?"

"Er…"

"Um…" Harry and Kuwabara looked at each other, at a loss.

"Spider," Hiei said faintly.

"Uh yes, a spider," Hagrid said loudly. "We were just inside the forest and out of nowhere a spider came down and bit Yusuke." Madame Pomfrey scrutinized Hagrid for a long moment. The half-giant squirmed under her gaze until she looked back at the bite marks.

"That was an awfully big spider. Thus being, it must have inserted a huge amount of venom. How is this boy even still alive?"

"Hiei sucked out most of the poison," Harry explained.

"Oh?" Madame Pomfrey said, turning her shrewd gaze to the short demon. "Did you swallow any?"

Hiei shook his head. "Paralysis…poison," he forced out. Madame Pomfrey came over to him and said, "Open your mouth, boy." Hiei glared at her for a second then decided this was not a time to be stubborn. He did as she said.

"Hmm," Madame Pomfrey said. "You'll be fine. You're not going to be able to eat anything for a while and your tongue is going to be that color for at least two days."

Hiei blinked. _What color?_ He stuck his tongue out and went cross-eyed to see that his tongue had turned a very interesting shade of lavender. Despite everything that was going on, Hiei heard Kuwabara snicker. He quickly sucked his tongue back in.

_Oooohh...__perfect_.

"Well this young man will make a full recovery in a day or so with some rest and painkillers, so no need to worry," said Madame Pomfrey as she took Yusuke's pulse. Kuwabara and Harry looked at each other with wide, relieved smiles. Hiei was leaning against a wall in a brooding position but he let out a small sigh of relief as well. "Congratulations to all of you," Madame Pomfrey. "This boy could have turned out a lot worse if it weren't for you."

"Just helping a friend," Harry replied.

The four were shooed out of the hospital wing and they stood together silently as the double doors to the ward closed with a creak.

"Well," Harry said tiredly. "He's going to be okay, at least."

"I was really worried about Urameshi for a while there," Kuwabara said. He added quickly, "But don't tell Yusuke I said that."

"Whatever," Hiei said, stretching. His voice was already sounding better, but it still had a hint of a slur. "I don't know about you all, but I'm not going to stand here like a scarecrow. I'm tired; see you all later." With a suppressed yawn Hiei turned and walked away.

"I hope your mouth feels better," Harry called after him. Hiei's only answer was a dismissive wave.

Seeing the demon leave made Harry realize just how tired he was too. The soreness and exhaustion finally caught up to him and his whole body slumped. Everything that had happened in the last hour and a half had felt incredibly long; yet there were many blurry and faded parts to it. Harry shook his head. Yusuke was alive and safe. That was the most important thing.

Hagrid exhaled a deep breath. "Well you two, thank you for helping me…find Will. At least now I know where he is." His voice was laced with pain and loss. "I'm sorry I made yeh go through all that…I never would have taken yeh into the forest if I knew there was even a chance of you getting hurt."

"We understand. Not a lot of chances to get hurt in a forest that's out-of-bounds to the entire school," Kuwabara said in a mock-casual voice. Hagrid was too tired to pick up on the sarcasm.

"I suppose it would be too much to ask if yeh'd come to Will's funeral tomorrow," Hagrid said. Harry and Kuwabara developed an obvious slump in their shoulders and Hagrid said quickly, "It was just a suggestion. Of course yeh don't have to come if you don't want to."

"Thanks," Kuwabara said gratefully.

"We're going to hit the sack," Harry said. "Good night, Hagrid, and I really am sorry about Will."

"Well," said Hagrid, attempting a smile that came out more like a grimace, "If Yusuke's condition is anything to go by, Will went out without feelin' any pain and…well I'm just glad that Yusuke is alright." He turned and stumped off with a heavy, tired tread.

"Come on," Kuwabara muttered to Harry. "Let's go to bed."

"Yeah." Harry and Kuwabara dragged themselves down the hallway toward the Gryffindor dormitory, a feeling of sadness settling in their hearts despite Yusuke's positive condition. That couldn't be helped when one knew there was some sort of unidentified monster in the forest outside that could rip a twelve-foot-long drake into pieces.

* * *

Dokkou: Okay obviously the story is taking an angsty turn. Sorry if you don't like it, but I'm just that sort of person. Trust me, it's only going to get more delicious--er, creepy. Hehe... but not the next chapter!! Next chapter's gonna be fun!!

Next Chapter: Quidditch at Last!!

Summary: At long last Yusuke and Kuwabara are going to fly. AH BALEEEEVE AH CAN FLY!! (sorry had to stick that in.) This is really just a happy, comic-relief chapter but it doesn't make it any less significant to the story. Besides, Kurama has to find out about this mystery creature too. After sensing it outside the forest, he decides to investigate. After all, he's going into his home turf: plants. Nothing in there can seriously hurt him, right?

Er...right?

**ATTENTION ALL INVADER ZIM FANS!!**

(sniffles dramatically) IIIIII have fought the temptation to post an invader Zim story for weeks now. But try as i might, the urge overpowered me, and flung me into a void of brainless, mindless, brainless typing. (puts hand to forehead sadly) Thus being, I was forced to write an Invader Zim Fanfic against my will! Said Fanfic, named DOOM and Stuff, has just been posted on my profile and I would like to know how good and/or bad the first chapter is. (sniffle) Oh woe is me, the pathetic specimen who hath been violently brainwashed by her own computer! Woe, for the sad creature whose fingers are almost pulled off by the terrible, overwhelming desire to type for you_ **people**_-- Yes, pity me, for I am pathetic.

* * *


	15. Quidditch At Last!

_Previously...  
_

_"I was really worried about Urameshi for a while there," Kuwabara said. He added quickly, "But don't tell Yusuke I said that."_

_"Whatever," Hiei said, stretching. His voice was already sounding better, but it still had a hint of a slur.__ "I don't know about you all, but I'm not going to stand here like a scarecrow. I'm tired; see you all later." With a suppressed yawn Hiei turned and walked away._

_"I hope your mouth feels better," Harry called after him. Hiei's only answer was a dismissive wave._

_Seeing the demon leave made Harry realize just how tired he was too. The soreness and exhaustion finally caught up to him and his whole body slumped. Everything that had happened in the last hour and a half had felt incredibly long; yet there were many blurry and faded parts to it. Harry shook his head. Yusuke was alive and safe. That was the most important thing._

_Hagrid exhaled a deep breath. "Well you two, thank you for helping me…find Will. At least now I know where he is." His voice was laced with pain and loss. "I'm sorry I made yeh go through all that…I never would have taken yeh into the forest if I knew there was even a chance of you getting hurt."_

_"We understand. Not a lot of chances to get hurt in a forest that's out-of-bounds to the entire school," Kuwabara said in a mock-casual voice. Hagrid was too tired to pick up on the sarcasm._

_"I suppose it would be too much to ask if yeh'd come to Will's funeral tomorrow," Hagrid said. Harry and Kuwabara developed an obvious slump in their shoulders and Hagrid said quickly, "It was just a suggestion. Of course yeh don't have to come if you don't want to."_

_"Thanks," Kuwabara said gratefully._

_"We're going to hit the sack," Harry said. "Good night, Hagrid, and I really am sorry about Will."_

_"Well," said Hagrid, attempting a smile that came out more like a grimace, "If Hiei and Yusuke are anything to go by, Will went out without feelin' any pain and…well I'm just glad that Yusuke is alright." He turned and stumped off with a heavy, tired tread._

_"Come on," Kuwabara muttered to Harry. "Let's go to bed."_

_"Yeah." Harry and Kuwabara dragged themselves down the hallway toward the Gryffindor dormitory, a feeling of sadness settling in their hearts despite Yusuke's positive condition. That couldn't be helped when one knew there was some sort of unidentified monster in the forest outside that could rip a twelve-foot-long drake into pieces._

* * *

Dokkou: Okay, here's something that will lighten this angsty mood a a bit: Quidditch!! Then again, it does take a turn around mid chap--Nuu! No spoilers... NOW READ!! ZIM COMMANDS YOU!!

INVADER ZIM ROCKS!! (runs off in a random circle holding a toy piggie and laughing head off)

* * *

Quidditch at Last!

By the next morning, Harry and Kuwabara's unhappy feelings had worn off quite a bit, leaving them very refreshed and clear-headed. Their moods were bolstered even more by the fact that today was Saturday and the first Quidditch practice of the year.

When Harry and Kuwabara went down to breakfast late that morning, they found the Great Hall packed and especially cheerful for the weekend; it had been a hard first week back.

"There you two are," Hermione said as Harry and Kuwabara sat next to her and Ron. "There's a rumor that Yusuke is in the hospital wing with a terrible sickness. Is it true?" She and Ron looked at them, wide-eyed. Kuwabara and Harry gave each other disbelieving looks. How did this stuff get out to the school after only one night and four witnesses? They both highly doubted Hiei or Hagrid had announced Yusuke's condition to the school.

"We were doing our detentions and we got too close to the forest," Kuwabara said before Harry could open his mouth. "Yusuke got bit by a pretty big poisonous spider."

"Ouch," Hermione said as Ron shuddered. A minute later, when she and Ron started arguing about house elves, Harry was about to interrogate Kuwabara when the carrot-top whispered to him, "It's better if the entire school doesn't know there's a big scary monster in the forest. It would cause mass panic, especially after what it did to Yusuke. Just play it cool, alright?"

Harry pondered Kuwabara's words for a moment and conceded. He was right. Working everyone into a lather was not the brightest idea.

"At least our detentions are over now," Harry said, spreading cream cheese over a bagel.

"Yeah. Can't say the same for Hiei," Kuwabara grinned. "He's still got six days of detention left. Ha ha."

"Wonder who he's going to be with: Hagrid, Snape or Umbridge?" Harry said thoughtfully. Kuwabara's grin faded to be replaced with a slightly horrified look.

"Oh man… if he's with Umbridge and she gives him lines, he's gonna kill her," Kuwabara muttered half to himself. Harry tilted his head at him curiously.

"What was that?"

"Oh, um nothing," Kuwabara said quickly. "Um so… what are Snape's detentions like?"

"Honestly I can't decide who is worse," Harry scowled. "Umbridge or Snape."

"Ah…" Kuwabara swallowed. "Well then let's hope Hiei doesn't get stuck with Umbridge or Snape." _For their sakes._

"I wonder if Yusuke is going to get out of the hospital wing today," Harry went on as Hermione and Ron's argument about the house elves began to get louder.

"Oh man, he's gonna be stoked if he can't play Quidditch today!" Kuwabara grinned.

"I was sort of looking forward to taking you both out on the field today," Harry said sadly.

"Who says Urameshi can't come out?" said Kuwabara vaguely. "He just needs a little motivation. Come on. We obviously won't be missed here." Kuwabara stood up and headed out of the Great Hall. Harry cast a glance at Ron and Hermione—who were both too caught up in their argument to even notice Kuwabara had left—then he hurried after his friend, saying, "Where are we going?"

"Hospital wing, of course," Kuwabara grinned.

* * *

Harry and Kuwabara pushed the doors of the hospital wing open to see the perfectly made white beds illuminated by sunlight. In a bed at the end of the ward was Yusuke. He was now dressed in a pair of white pants and a white long-sleeve shirt. He was propped up on his pillows and Kurama was sitting on the foot of his bed. A small vase of fresh roses were sitting on the table next to Yusuke's bed.

"…you don't remember anything that happened after this creature lunged at you?" Kurama was saying with the air of a therapist.

"Well, I sort of remember feelings," Yusuke muttered, lying back with his hands behind his head. "I remember going numb all over, but I wasn't exactly unconscious. I could sense the thing hovering over me… but I couldn't move or anything. I felt totally helpless." He rubbed the side of his neck subconsciously. The puncture marks were gone, thanks to Madame Pomfrey, leaving only a peppering of small red scars. Obviously the two of them had not noticed Kuwabara and Harry enter the ward. Harry and Kuwabara stood by the doors, listening.

"Did it bite you again?" Kurama asked.

"No," Yusuke replied. "It actually left. I think something scared it off. But then I felt something bite me again, only this time the numbing feeling seemed to be leaving." He rubbed his head in frustration. "I don't remember very well… I'm pretty sure I was unconscious by then."

"We can tell you what happened." A voice said. Yusuke and Kurama looked up in surprise to see Kuwabara and Harry coming toward them.

"Glad to see you're both unscathed," Kurama smiled.

"Don't worry, we're completely fine," Harry smiled back. It was hard not to. Kurama just had that effect on people: his emotions spread to the people around him.

"Hey yeah, you two were there," Yusuke said, "What happened back in the forest yesterday? Nobody's actually been able to tell me and it's really ticking me off." Kuwabara and Harry pulled chairs over from two other beds and sat beside to Yusuke; Kuwabara sat backward on his chair.

"Well," he said, "Harry, Hagrid and I didn't see whatever attacked you, but Hiei did. From what he said, he saw the thing right after it bit you and it ran away when he showed up. When Hagrid, Harry and me arrived…" he pulled an evil smile that made Yusuke swallow. "Hiei had his teeth sunk in your throat."

"WHAT?!" Yusuke shouted, clutching his throat. His voice reverberated loudly around the tall-ceilinged ward.

"Hiei was sucking the poison out," Harry explained quickly.

"_HE_ was what bit me?! GEEZ his teeth are sharp!" Yusuke said in a choked voice.

"It's a bit unprecedented, but effective," Kurama said thoughtfully.

"You were a total mess when we showed up, Urameshi," said Kuwabara to Yusuke, who seemed to be developing a green tint.

"I felt like a mess," Yusuke muttered. "And I'm starting to feel like one again."

Kuwabara flashed a grin at Harry and then said innocently, "Gee, Urameshi, that's really too bad, seein' as we were gonna watch Harry have Quidditch practice today, and not to mention fly around on his broom."

Yusuke was standing by the door in less than a second.

"Well come on, what are we waiting for!?" he snapped, jogging in place. "Let's go before night falls!"

Kuwabara and Harry laughed as Kurama said reproachfully, "I thought you said you weren't feeling well?"

"That was a whole minute ago!" Yusuke argued. "A guy can heal a huge amount in a minute!"

"I dunno, Urameshi," Kuwabara said in a mock worried voice. "You still seem really sick. Maybe you should stay in bed all day."

"Why yes," Kurama said innocently, picking up on the joke, "You're looking very pale, Yusuke. I think you need lots of bedrest and chicken soup."

"... ... ... ..." Yusuke gave them a deadpanned look, his hands on his hips. "Alright you guys, you can shut up now, really."

Kuwabara, Harry and Kurama laughed.

* * *

Yusuke had to argue hard with Madame Pomfrey to convince her that he was well enough to leave the hospital wing. In the end she conceded with the warning, "Don't do anything strenuous for a while!" as the four walked out of the ward. Yeah right, lady.

Yusuke held out his white-clothed arms out. "Okay, I'm gonna get dressed in normal clothes and I'll meet you all on the Quidditch field."

"Hurry, Yusuke, practice starts in ten minutes!" Harry called after him. His words were lost on the Spirit Detective, who was already at the other end of the hallway.

"You coming, Kurama?" Harry asked the red-head, secretly hoping he would. He was starting to think of Kurama as a younger version of Professor Lupin; knowledgeable, calm, helpful, good looking, and friendly.

Kurama smiled. "Sure, why not? I can finish my potions homework later."

* * *

Yusuke skidded around a corner and as he did, a droning voice said, "Up already, I see."

Yusuke looked around to see a fire demon dressed in black pants and a light-blue muscle shirt leaning against the wall, arms folded. Sandstorm was perched on his shoulder, green eyes glowing smugly.

"Hey Hiei," said Yusuke, jogging in place. "I'm going to get dressed so that I can go down the field and watch the Quidditch practice in action. It sounds really cool. Wanna come?"

Sandstorm's head cocked while Hiei's lip curled. "No."

"Fine, whatever. See ya later!" Yusuke turned and started down the hallway, but he paused.

"Hey Hiei?"

"Hn?"

"Thanks for last night. I might not be here if it weren't for you."

Hiei shrugged, pushed off the wall and blurred away down the empty hallway. Yusuke smiled to himself and continued running to the Gryffindor dorm.

* * *

"WOO!! Go Harry!" Kuwabara cheered as Harry pulled out of a spectacular dive on his legendary Firebolt. Harry waved at his audience with a grin. Out of nowhere, the red quaffle came out of nowhere and smacked into the back of his head.

"Careful, Harry!" Fred shouted, flying past Harry's left with mock concern. "Those quaffles can be ruthless!"

"They're attracted to stupidity," George added, flying past on Harry's right.

"Then why aren't they attracted to you?" Harry asked grumpily, throwing the quaffle at George.

"Because we're not the stupidest ones here!" Fred grinned. A shrill whistle echoed over the field, courtesy of a very grumpy Angelina.

"Pay attention, you three!" She shouted. "This is our first practice with _all our members," _she glared at Harry, "So we need to work twice as hard. Let's go! Throw that quaffle up and let's get playing!" She blew her whistle again.

The three spectators below, Hermione, Kurama and Kuwabara, watched the game in wonder. Brummer was perched on Kurama's shoulder, watching the broomsticks in the air curiously.

"Hey wait for me!" A voice said. The three looked around to see Yusuke leap into the stands and stomp up to them, dressed in a pair of skinny jeans, a white T-shirt and a red jacket with yellow trim; Kuwabara and Kurama recognized the outfit from the Dark Tournament.

"Thanks for waiting," he said grumpily, plunking himself between Kurama and Kuwabara.

"Miss Angelina was extremely anxious to start practice," Kurama said lightly. "We decided not to distract her."

"Especially since she's scary when she's mad," Kuwabara added fearfully. Brummer turned a faint orange color.

"Watch it, Ron!" the audience looked up in time to see Ron make a dive for the approaching quaffle, which was heading toward the far left goal post. Ron ended up flipping almost upside-down and his fingers slid past the ball. Angelina blew her whistle and flew over with a frown.

"Keep your guard up! You should have been watching Katie _who had the quaffle _instead of watching Fred and George bat that bludger around."

"Sorry, coach," Ron muttered, abashed. Angelina sighed and clapped him on the shoulder.

"It's alright. It's your first practice." She zoomed away on her broom, leaving Ron slumping in disappointment.

The rest of the practice was almost painful to watch. The entire team, especially Harry, were brilliant, diving and zooming around the Quidditch pitch in daring blurs; but then there was Ron…

Angelina's whistle shrieked over the field. "Come on, Ron! How could you miss that save? You went in the complete opposite direction!"

"Sorry," Ron panted. The poor boy looked close to a breakdown. Yusuke and Kuwabara watched Ron's latest failure with scowls and impatiently tapping feet. Angelina let her whistle fall back against her neck on its string.

"Okay, team, I think that's enough for today. We'll try again tomorrow. And Ron…" the redhead looked up dejectedly. "Nice try." Ron's head dropped down as he descended to the ground.

"Oh dear," Hermione said pityingly. She, Yusuke, Kuwabara and Kurama left the stands and hurried over to the redhead.

"You weren't as bad as you thought!" Hermione said, attempting an encouraging voice.

"Yeah. I was worse," Ron muttered. Harry landed beside him in one fluid, easy movement.

"Come on, Ron," he said, "It was your first official practice. Do you think I was good during my first practice?" Ron looked up and actually glared at Harry. Harry ducked his head awkwardly. "Okay well maybe I was…er… so Yusuke, Kuwabara, you wanna take a ride?"

"Yeah!" Yusuke and Kuwabara chorused eagerly. Ron held out his broom to Kuwabara.

"Here, you can use mine. I won't be needing it," he mumbled. Kuwabara looked at his gloomy face uncomfortably, but took the broom. Harry handed the Firebolt to Yusuke and began instructing the two on how to mount it.

Ron headed toward the locker rooms, his eyes locked on his shuffling feet.

"Ron. Wait."

Ron looked around to Kurama and Hermione, who were hurrying after him. "Ron, please listen to me," Kurama said calmly. "You feel bad, obviously. But what are you going to do about it?"

"I'm gonna go to bed," Ron grunted.

"Alright. What about tomorrow? And the day after that? Are you still going to feel bad? Do not forget that you're part of this team now. They need you. You need to work hard to help them. Are you going to accomplish that in your bed?" Hermione looked at Kurama, wide-eyed, then at Ron. Ron was staring at the ground with a mixture of emotions.

"At least come and watch Yusuke and Kuwabara fly. They were so eager for this," Kurama pressed.

"Fine," Ron said gloomily. Kurama sighed slightly. A small victory, but a victory nonetheless. The three headed back to the Quidditch pitch in time to see Yusuke and Kuwabara rise into the air.

"Whoa! This is so cool!" Kuwabara shouted with a huge grin, staring at the ground five feet below him.

"Kuwabara! Check this out!" Yusuke said, and he rolled in midair. "Agh!" He clung hard to the broom handle.

"Careful!" Harry laughed. "Don't get cocky."

"Heh!" Yusuke smirked. "Cocky is my middle name!" And with that he rocketed up in the air.

"Wait for me you little punk!" Kuwabara yelled, and he shot up after the Spirit Detective.

"Wait!" Harry shouted at them in alarm. "Don't go too high!" His order was lost. Yusuke and Kuwabara zoomed around the pitch in a truly impressive show of aerial acrobatics. Harry, Hermione and Ron watched in amazement. Kurama shook his head as his eyes followed their progress.

"They're…good," Harry breathed in amazement as Kuwabara did a diagonal flip.

"They're showing off," Kurama said in amusement.

"Hey what's going on?" a voice behind them said. They looked around to see Angelina, Katie, Fred, George, and Alicia coming over, watching Kuwabara and Yusuke curiously.

"Just letting those two have a spin on our brooms," Harry replied. "They've never actually flown before."

"Are you sure?" Alicia said, watching Kuwabara do a barrel roll around the stands. Yusuke suddenly zoomed over and hovered upside down above the audience. A huge grin was plastered on his face.

"Hey, can we get that quaffle thingy?" he said excitedly. "This is fun!" The team looked around at Angelina with slightly pleading expressions. They were becoming eager to see what Yusuke and Kuwabara could really do.

"Oh alright," Angelina sighed. She drew her wand and said, "Accio, chest!" a wooden trunk came flying out of the locker room and slid to a halt at her feet. She opened it and pulled out the quaffle.

"Okay, here you go," she said, tossing the ball up. Yusuke took both his arms off the broom and caught the ball, still completely upside-down. He rolled, shot off and shouted, "Hey, Kuwabara!" he tossed the quaffle to the carrot-top, who caught it with one hand.

"Bet I can make it from here, Urameshi!" Kuwabara grinned.

"Yeah right!" Yusuke said doubtfully. In the center of the field, Kuwabara drew his arm back and hurled the quaffle at the goal post. The red ball soared through the air with a slight spin. The audience watched it with bated breath.

With a_ shoop_, the quaffle shot right through the middle goal post. The audience sent up a huge cheer and Kuwabara did a triumphant loop the loop in midair. Yusuke soared over and thumped him on the back with a grin.

"My turn!" he said eagerly.

"Hang on!" Fred shouted up at them.

"What say we make this a little trickier?" said George with a mischievous smile. They went over to the trunk and reached toward the bludgers, which were struggling beneath their leather straps.

"Now wait just a minute," Angelina said loudly, but too late. As one, Fred and George pulled the straps and the bludgers rocketed into the sky. The audience craned their heads back. One of the bludgers veered, headed straight for Yusuke's head. He yelled and ducked and the bludger blasted over his head.

"Geez!" Yusuke shouted.

"Hey, Urameshi! Pay attention!" Kuwabara yelled. Yusuke looked around in time to see Kuwabara fly past him, the quaffle under his arm. He was heading for the opposite goal post.

"Oh no you don't!" Yusuke said with a fierce smile, and he shot after Kuwabara on the Firebolt. Kuwabara drew his arm, about to hurl the quaffle through the goal post, when he saw a bludger coming at him out of he corner of his eye.

"Oh crap!" He shouted. Out of nowhere, Fred appeared in his broom and whacked the bludger away with a short wooden bat.

"Close call, mate," Fred grinned. Something flew up behind him and pushed on the back of his head.

"Hey!"

"Watch it, bro," George smiled at his twin. Yusuke flew up next to him with a smirk.

"Oh, so that's how you're gonna play," Fred scowled. "Fine! Come on, Kuwabara let's kick their butts!"

"Yeah!" Kuwabara cheered, high-fiving Fred.

"You guys are gonna need some help!" Katie shouted, and she jumped on her broom and flew up next to Yusuke.

"No offense, Kate," Alicia smiled, hovering up near Kuwabara. The six glared at each other across the pitch. Angelina motioned to Kuwabara, and he dropped her the quaffle.

"Okay, everyone!" Angelina shouted. "Play ball!" and as she blew hard on her whistle, she threw the quaffle straight up in the air. Immediately, the six players burst into action.

"Wow," Harry said as he watched the game commence. "We weren't this enthusiastic when we were just practicing!" He glanced over at Ron and mentally flinched. The redhead was looking more forlorn than ever. Angelina suddenly came up to him and said, "I'll be keeper for Kuwabara's team if you be keeper for Yusuke. They need all the help they can get."

"Then they'd better not look at me," said Ron, turning away.

"Nonsense," a voice said behind him. He looked around and blinked when he saw Kurama smiling at him, a rather nice-looking broom in his hand.

"Where did you get that?" Angelina said, dumfounded.

"From the broom shed, of course."

"I thought I locked that shed," Angelina muttered as Kurama held out the broom to Ron. Ron looked at it doubtfully, then up at Kurama hesitantly. Kurama smiled reassuringly at him and said, "They need you."

"The sooner the better," Angelina added, hopping up on her broom and flying toward Kuwabara's team. Ron looked at the team, then at Kurama.

"This isn't practice, this is just fun!" Kurama said to him cheerfully. Out of nowhere, Ron smiled and grabbed the broom.

"Okay then! Look out, you guys!" He mounted the broom and zoomed into the game.

"How did you do that?" Hermione asked in amazement, watching Fred and George thump Ron enthusiastically on the back.

"Just a bit of motivation," Kurama replied. "Now then, it's almost noon and I have a paper for potions class to finish. I'll see you around, Hermione." He bowed slightly before walking away to the castle, his long red hair glistening in the sunlight.

"Bye, Kurama," Hermione called after him with a smile.

* * *

Kurama glanced over his shoulder. The Quidditch stadium was now only the size of a chair, and he could no longer hear the players' wild yells and cheers. He turned and took a deep breath of the warm air. He suddenly lost all motivation to do his potions essay. He looked at the giant lake, now only a couple hundred feet away. There was a copse of trees right on the bank. He smiled and headed toward it.

As he entered the trees, Kurama noticed a peculiar aura. He glanced around questioningly and spotted an odd sight: a girl in a white dress with long, dirty-bond hair was sitting pensively on the bank of the lake. Her bare feet were dipped in the water and she was staring up at the sky.

Suddenly she looked around, saying, "Who's there?" Kurama felt a flash of recognition and he stepped into the open.

"Just me," he said. The girl tilted her head and said in a familiar dreamy voice, "Oh hello Shuichi, or should I say Kurama. I haven't seen you in a while."

"Nor I you," Kurama smiled. "You're Luna Lovegood, right?"

Luna nodded and smiled. "Glad you remember." Kurama came over and stood next to her, staring out at the lake.

"What are you doing out here, all alone?" he inquired.

"Just thinking," Luna said dreamily, splashing her feet in the water. "What are you doing?"

"Just trying to get away from the hustle and bustle," Kurama replied.

"And your fan club?" said Luna curiously. Kurama smiled sheepishly.

"Why yes." Luna let out a small, bell-like laugh. She patted the ground beside her.

"I promise I won't jump on you like your other female companions," she smiled. Kurama sat beside her with a chuckle. For a while there was a strangely comfortable silence between the two of them. Kurama felt oddly peaceful. Then again, it was a sunny day and he was surrounded by the gentle whisperings of trees and flowers.

"Have you ever seen someone die?" Luna said suddenly as though the thought had just occurred to her. The happy mood crashed to the ground. Kurama looked at her oddly.

"Well…yes…why?"

"Have you ever heard of thestrals?" Luna said.

"No…"

"Would you like to see one?"

* * *

Kurama watched the creature before him with slight apprehension. It was understandable. The thing in front of him was like a skeletal, black, reptilian horse with enormous leathery wings on its back. Luna, however, walked over to it and patted it on its pinched head, still barefoot. The two were just barely within the border of the Forbidden Forest, surrounded by towering trees and sheltered by a thick canopy above.

"Fascinating," Kurama said. He stiffened as another thestral walked behind his back, sniffing him curiously.

"They won't hurt you," Luna said vaguely, reaching into a pocket and pulling out a piece of meat wrapped in a napkin. The thestral nosed the napkin open and bit down on the meat. "You can only see thestrals if you have seen death, but that doesn't make them bad."

"No, I suppose it wouldn't," Kurama said, tentatively reaching out and touching the nose of a small thestral. It let out a shrill whinny and pushed against his hand. Kurama smiled and stroked down its long, shrunken snout. There were at least five thestrals around them.

"How are you liking Hogwarts?" Luna asked dreamily. "Is it very different from Japan?"

"Very," Kurama replied as the thestrals came closer to him. "You see I lived in the middle of the city, so there weren't a lot of forested areas in the nearby vicinity."

"Too bad," Luna said. "You should be careful to watch out for Gillybips in the city." Kurama looked at her quizzically.

"Gillybips?"

"Yes," said Luna in all seriousness. "They are small rat-like creatures that sneak into your house and go about searching for dust bunnies. The only things that can fend them off are stewed radishes."

"I…see."

Luna wiped her hands on the sides of her dress. "I've suddenly remembered that I have homework in History of Magics class," she said loosely. "Would you like to come back up to the castle with me? I believe lunch is starting soon anyway."

"I appreciate the offer, but no thank you," Kurama said politely to her. "These creatures are fascinating. I want to stay here and study them a bit." He turned to her with an honest smile. "But I hope we can talk again soon." Luna smiled back at him, marveling at his open honesty.

"Very well. I'll see you around, Shuichi." She turned and headed back to the castle, seeming unperturbed by her bare feet.

Kurama stroked down the thestral's snout. The beast relaxed under his touch. _These creatures really aren't as bad as they look,_ Kurama thought. _They're so gentle._

Suddenly the thestrals all jerked back and uneasily stirred around. Kurama looked at them, bemused. The winged horses whinnied and cantered away into the forest. Kurama watched them go. _Why are they?--_ He stiffened when a chill swept over him. He slid into a battle ready stance, his hand reaching toward his hair where a rose was hidden. He stared hard into the shadows of the forest. For a long minute he stood frozen, listening hard. Nothing moved but the leaves on the trees around him. Kurama slowly relaxed, but the evil presence remained.

_There's something in there._ Kurama took a wary step forward, then another. He kept his slow progress going until he was surrounded by shadows. The twittering of birds had stopped. Kurama kept looking around. The lurking aura seemed to be all around him. He pulled a red rose out of his hair and it stretched and spun into his trademark Rose Whip. Now better armed, he walked forward with slightly more confidence. The farther he went, the darker it became until it was almost as dark as night.

Kurama glanced around in the near blackness, not dropping his guard for a moment. He constantly felt the aura, steadily growing more threatening. Finally he stopped.

"I know you're there," he said out loud.

The forest around him was silent. Suddenly there was a flare of energy behind him and Kurama whirled around, only to smack hard into something very hard and large. He fell back, shaking his head. He quickly looked up, and his heart slowed.

He'd walked right into a tree.

He stood up and dusted himself off, his nerves fraying. He'd had enough. He was about to retrace his steps when he felt the energy again, menacing and evil. He stiffened as a strange feeling crept over him.

_Get out. _

Kurama started to look around, but he was stopped when that message came again in the form of a hostile emotion. He _felt _the message.

"Alright," he said out loud, "Alright, I'm leaving." He cautiously began to go back the way he came. All the while, he could swear he felt eyes on his back; hostile, threatening, hungry. Whenever he tried to turn his head and maybe get a glance at his stalker, that menacing feeling would come again and his eyes would quickly flick forward. When at last he emerged from the trees, he felt the presence no more, but the evil feeling remained. He let out a slightly shaky breath. Without a single backward look, he walked back to the castle, his mind oddly blank. No matter what he tried to think, no plan or thought would stay in his mind before disintegrating. One thought did manage to stick in his mind though:

Don't go into the forest.

* * *

Dokkou: Wow, even Kurama is afraid. Spoooooky isn't it? Good! Hahaha...

Okay my wonderful reviewers! I have a new task for you all. Call it homework. Fun homework! I need you guys to send me your favorite songs! Allow me to explain. hem hem... ew that sounded like Umbridge...

I want you all to tell me one (or more) of your favorite songs. Include the name and artist. Trust me, its impacts a future chapter!! Halloween, I should add. Hahahaa... Anyway, the song must be somethin' that really gets your blood pumping, like rock, and it has to be sung by a guy. NOOOO BAD WORDS. Well, no SERIOUS bad words. Hell and Damn are (relatively) okay. The Halloween chapter isn't coming for a while so you all have plenty of time. I'm really just doing it in advance because, as you all know, I like doing stuff early!! Yay for punctuality!

* * *

One more thing... Welcome to Hogwarts has hit the 10,200 hit mark! Wow! More than 10,000 hits... unbelievable. Thank you everyone for reading my story, it really means a lot! I'm so grateful and proud... (wipes away a happy tear)

* * *

One one MORE thing to **INVADER ZIM FANS**: I updated my IZ fic DOOM and Stuff with chapter three! Check it out if interested!

* * *

Next Chapter: The Hunt Is On

Summary: Hell-bent for revenge, (well, Hiei is at least) Hiei and Hagrid are going into the Forbidden Forest to find Yusuke's assailant. But this creature might be better off left alone. Then again, who knows what they'll find. It's a big forest after all...

This adventure is going to take a lot of athletics and inhuman perseverance. How is Hiei going to hide it from Hagrid? Well maybe he won't...

_"Are you getting at something, Hagrid? Stop picking around it and come out and say it."_

_"Are you human?"_

_"... ...Um...I am part vampire."_

* * *


	16. The Hunt Is On

_Previously...  
_

_There's something in there. Kurama took a wary step forward, then another. He kept his slow progress going until he was surrounded by shadows. The twittering of birds had stopped. Kurama kept looking around. The lurking aura seemed to be all around him. He pulled a red rose out of his hair and it stretched and spun into his trademark Rose Whip. Now better armed, he walked forward with slightly more confidence. The farther he went, the darker it became until it was almost as dark as night._

_Kurama glanced around in the near blackness, not dropping his guard for a moment. He constantly felt the aura, steadily growing more threatening. Finally he stopped._

_"I know you're there," he said out loud. The forest around him was silent. Suddenly there was a flare of energy behind him and Kurama whirled around, only to smack hard into something very large. He fell back, shaking his head. He quickly looked up, and his heart slowed. He'd walked right into a tree. He stood up and dusted himself off, his nerves fraying. He'd had enough. He was about to retrace his steps when he felt the energy again, menacing and evil. He stiffened as a strange feeling crept over him._

Get out._ Kurama started to look around, but he was stopped when that message came again in the form of a hostile emotion. He __felt the message._

_"Alright," he said out loud, "Alright, I'm leaving." He cautiously began to go back the way he came. All the while, he could swear he felt eyes on his back; hostile, threatening, hungry. When at last he emerged from the trees, he felt the presence no more, but the evil feeling remained. He let out a slightly shaky breath. Without a single backward look, he walked back to the castle, his mind oddly blank. No matter what he tried to think, no plan or thought would stay in his mind before disintegrating. One thought did manage to stick in his mind though:_

_Don't go into the forest._

* * *

Dokkou: I'm so sorry this chapter is so late!! I know you've all been looking forward to it for so long!! My schedule has been messed up. School started on the 2nd, and my first day back as a sophomore was super hard... and as to the week before... AAAAAHHH!! Paaaaaiiin... aaaagony. Yes, the horrible truth comes through:

Volleyball practice has begun. You're probably thinking, "What? Volleyball? Is that all she's whining about?" Well I've got news for you: It's so painful!! Okay, you want to know how our practices go? First, when we show up, we run five laps around the gym. Then we go down to the football field outside and run a mile around the field and if we don't do it in under 9 minutes, we have to run it again tomorrow... and the next day, and the next day, and the next day.

After the mile, we have to run up the stairs of the bleachers three times, then hop up the stairs of the bleachers on the left foot three times, then hop up the stairs of the bleachers three times on the right foot, then hop up the stairs of the bleachers three times on both feet, then run up the actual seats of the bleachers three times... then we go back to the gym, take a two minute break, run five more laps around the gym, stretch, then do circuits, which is a bunch of stations around the gym of various physical activity such as curl-ups, lunges, boards, sprints, wall-sits, push-ups etc.

By this time, an hour and a half of time has passed and for the last half hour, we are finally allowed to touch the volleyball, but we don't actually play. Our current torture is to get the ball over the net fifty passes in a row without dropping it. We've worked on it for a week and a half and still haven't succeeded. During the final week before school, we had two volleyball practices a day, each two hours long. Now that school started, that time has changed to 4PM to 6PM right after school. OH and then on the first day of school I had homework in four out of my five classes so needless to say I've been really busy.

So please, find it in your hearts to forgive me for not updating on time. I was immoble from pain for a couple of days.

Alright, my rant is over. Now sit back and enjoy this chapter, written with my broken, exhausted fingers.

(falls over on face)

* * *

The Hunt is On

Hiei's eyes were closed as he leaned back against the interior wooden wall of Hagrid's cabin, his arms and legs crossed. Hagrid was sitting at his wooden table, staring into the depths of his bucket-sized mug of tea. It had been silent between them almost since Hiei had arrived. A fire was crackling in the fireplace. Fang was hiding in his cushiony bed, looking fearfully at Hiei and occasionally letting out very small whistle-like whines.

"Sure yeh don't want any tea?" Hagrid said at long last to Hiei.

"No."

"Alright…" That silence again.

Hiei half-opened his eyes and stared into the fire.

"Have you buried the drake yet?"

"Not yet," Hagrid said softly. "I didn't have an opportunity last night, and I've been teachin' classes all day. I was hoping ter do it tonight, but…" he trailed off and took a gulp of tea.

"Are you going to go after it?" Hiei said, watching a log crumble into ash.

"Eh?"

Hiei looked over at the half-giant, his red eyes intense. "Don't you want revenge?" he said softly.

"Revenge?" Hagrid repeated blankly.

"Yes." Hiei pushed off the wall and put his hands on the table. He leaned forward. "I can help you get it," he said in a fierce whisper. "I can help you find that monster. I can help you make it pay."

Hagrid gave him a steady look.

"Is it my revenge we're talking about or yours?" he said bleakly.

Hiei blinked and leaned back. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"I think you're the one who wants revenge," said Hagrid wisely. "For Yusuke, right?"

Hiei's eyes were carefully blank. "Perhaps a little. But I want it more because that monster escaped me." _No one has ever escaped me._

"In my lifetime," Hagrid said sensibly, "I've realized that vengeance brings more grief than it does joy."

"Sometimes it is necessary," Hiei said. "To preserve honor, to prove a point, to…"

"To settle a petty score?" Hagrid put in dryly. Hiei sniffed and leaned against the wall again. Hagrid took a sip of his tea.

"You're an odd one." Hagrid said pensively. "You're almost eager ter go into the forest, yeh handle danger well, you're obviously willing to face this mystery creature head on, and you… well you just have this unnatural air around you."

"Just lucky I guess," Hiei said.

"I don't think so," Hagrid said carefully. He took another gulp of tea and stroked his beard. "You know, I'm not completely human. I'm actually half-giant. Me ma was a giant. My pa was human, and a darn good one too." His prompt was met with silence. Clearly this was going to take more motivation.

"Some people are afraid of me for not bein' fully human," Hagrid went on, watching Hiei out of the corner of his eye. "But I don't mind. If they take the time to get to know me, they find that I'm a good guy. Being a half-blood is nothing I'm ashamed of."

Hiei's eyes narrowed. "Are you getting at something? Stop picking around it and come out and say it."

Hagrid swirled his tea. "Are you human?"

Hiei looked up, his eyes locked on a hatchet hanging above the fireplace mantle, keeping his face clear of the surprised expression that was fighting to come up. Now what? He didn't have an answer prepared.

"Yes," he lied at last. "But…" his mind raced… "Not completely. I…" he thought back to yesterday morning, when Ron had shoved that stupid garlic-and onion bagel in his face, and he said the first thing that came to his mind… "I have some vampire blood in my veins."

Hiei mentally smacked himself.

"Vampire?" Hagrid repeated. Hiei bit his lip, wondering if he'd just said something very unwise. "That explains a lot," Hagrid said with a satisfied smile. At last Hiei looked Hagrid in the eye.

"It does?"

"Well yes." Hagrid drained his giant cup. "It explains why your eyes are red, why you're so pale, why you have such a withdrawn personality, why you…" he trailed off.

"Why I what?" Hiei said sharply.

"Well, when you bit Yusuke…" Hagrid said vaguely. Hiei cut him off with a loud huff.

"What side of your family?" Hagrid said.

Hiei's brain raced. "My great grandfather... on my father's side. His blood isn't thick in me, but it is here." He attempted a convincing smile, which showed off a set of appropriate fangs. "Obviously."

"Well," Hagrid said to him with a warm smile, "I just want you to know that if yeh ever feel out of place or lonely you can come to me."

The smile flicked off like a lightswitch. Hiei stood up straight and bristled.

"Spare me your sentiments," he said fiercely. "I do not need comfort. I am perfectly comfortable with what I am and if _anyone has a problem with it they will find a blade at their throat._" Hagrid's bushy eyebrows shot up. Hiei shook himself and his tone was formal and stiff as he said, "What do you want from me? I still have to do your detention."

Hagrid stood and poured some more hot water into his teacup. After dropping another tea bag into it he stirred it and sat back at the table.

"I don't have anything for you to do," Hagrid replied at last. "I'm goin' ter bury Will tonight. You can go back up to the castle if yeh want."

"Hn." Hiei strode to the door and pulled it open. He looked into the gathering darkness and paused with his hand on the doorknob.

"Hagrid," he said softly.

"Yes?"

"Do not forget my offer for revenge. As you have guessed I am not normal so I will not hesitate to tell you that I am eager to spill blood." Hagrid was silent, then he said softly, "I'll keep it in mind."

Soft as a shadow, Hiei stepped out the door and closed it with a quiet thump behind him. Hagrid leaned back in his enormous armchair.

Only later after much reminiscing did Hiei realize just how wise the lie about being a vampire had been; it fit him perfectly and put off any more curiosity.

Hiei stood staring at the dark, swaying trees of the Forbidden Forest. Who knew what those shadows could be hiding. Hiei wanted to know. More than anything, he wanted to know. He took a step toward the forest then stopped. He glanced over his shoulder at Hagrid's hut, then at the castle. He turned back to the forest with a murderous look.

"Someday," he said murderously. "Someday soon. But not today." And he disappeared in a black blur.

* * *

The library was one of the few places Kurama was starting to feel safe. Madame Pince, the librarian, was vicious against those who broke her rules of silence and disruption, so Kurama was reasonably safe from his crazed fan club. Even so, he glanced around every now and then. Seeing no crazed fangirls during one particular search he looked back down at his book. He scribbled something on his sheaf of parchment and turned a page. His eyes scanned the page's content: _Use in iron cauldron only…. add four crow eyes… the middle finger of an aye-aye… one squashed banana…_

Kurama felt a presence. He looked around to see Hiei slide into the empty seat beside him.

"Ah, there you are," Kurama said. "Did you finish your detention already?"

"Yes." Hiei answered. "Hagrid was annoying me so I left." He pulled a book toward him and flipped the cover open uninterestedly.

"Mm-hm," Kurama said, arching an eyebrow. "How so?" Hiei was silent as he gazed at the book. Then he slowly looked into Kurama's eyes.

"He knows," Hiei whispered. Kurama instantly became alert.

"Knows what?" Kurama whispered back.

"That I'm not human." Kurama thought he heard a faint noise in the background but his focus was too centered on Hiei.

"What did you tell him?" Kurama said tersely.

Suddenly Hiei grinned. "I told him I was part vampire. On my _great grandfather's_ side." Kurama let out a long breath.

"That was extremely rash of you, Hiei... I'm not sure if this is good or bad," he murmured.

"Who cares," Hiei said, turning his attention (such as it was) back to the book. "I don't think he's going to tell anyone, honestly."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course. I read his mind."

"Well… alright. If he's the only one you told. I know it seems insignificant, but if anyone caught onto this little rumor I feel that there would be no end of grief for you."

"Hn. You worry too much."

How wrong he was.

* * *

The next morning at breakfast Kurama's prophecy came true.

It was early morning on Sunday. Hiei was sitting at the Slytherin table, dreaming of what he was going to do on this beautiful day. Well, beautiful day by his standards; the sky outside was iron grey, constantly threatening rain. Hiei was thinking of curling up in that beech tree by the lake and taking a nap… then maybe even go into the forest and find that creature… his thoughts were rudely interrupted by a horribly familiar and very loud voice.

"Hey, bloodsucker. Dreaming about your next victim?" Hiei stood up and faced Malfoy, who was, as usual, surrounded by his two bodyguards.

"You're making even less sense than usual, scumblood," Hiei said. He was in a good mood, and he wanted to see Malfoy get fired up at the 'scumblood' comment. But Malfoy only smirked nastily.

"For a leech, you have terrible taste for blood. My blood is pure." He traipsed forward and Crabbe and Goyle flanked him closely, watching Hiei with surprisingly wary expressions. They obviously remembered their brawl with the demon from last week.

Malfoy leaned in close to Hiei's face. "You really should be more careful about what you blabber about in the library," he said nastily. Hiei's eye twitched, and Malfoy's smile widened.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Hiei said stiffly.

"Really." Malfoy began to languidly pace around the fire demon, like a panther around a wounded deer. "I heard the whole thing," he said smugly.

FLASHBACK

Malfoy saw Hiei dart into the library and his curiosity was piqued. He quietly set down a book on particularly unpleasant curses and followed the demon. He spotted his quarry sit next to that redhead Ravenclaw kid and they started talking. Malfoy tiptoed closer and hid behind a bookshelf.

"…was annoying me so I left." Hiei pulled a book toward him and flipped the cover open uninterestedly.

"Mm-hm," Kurama said, arching an eyebrow. "How so?" Hiei was silent as he gazed at the book. Then he slowly looked into Kurama's eyes.

"He knows," Malfoy heard Hiei whisper. Kurama stiffened.

"Knows what?" Kurama whispered back.

"That I'm not human." Malfoy gasped softly and quickly silenced himself. Hiei and Kurama didn't seem to notice.

"What did you tell him?" Kurama said tersely.

Suddenly Hiei grinned in what Malfoy thought was a very evil way. "I told him I was part vampire. On my great grandfather's side." Kurama let out a long, worried breath.

"I'm not sure if this is good or bad," he murmured.

"Who cares," Hiei said, turning his attention back to the book. "I don't think he's going to tell anyone, honestly."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course. I read his mind," he said sarcastically. At least Malfoy assumed it was sarcasm.

"Well… alright. If he's the only one you told. I know it seems insignificant, but if anyone caught onto this little rumor I feel that there would be no end of grief for you."

"Hn. You worry too much."

Malfoy stepped backward and fled from the library, his face a mask of malicious glee.

END FLASHBACK

The demon's whole body tightened considerably at the end of this speech. An evil smile spread across Malfoy's face as he continued to pace menacingly around Hiei, hands behind his back.

"Who did you tell?" he asked smugly. "Potty? Granger? Or maybe Weasle boy. No doubt someone from another house. You're so obviously a traitor." Hiei bared his teeth but said nothing. Malfoy mistook this for speechless fear-- a deadly mistake on his part. In reality, Hiei was thinking hard.

"Tell you what," Malfoy said over Hiei's shoulder. "If you get on your knees and beg me, _maybe_ I won't tell the whole school what you are. What do you say?"

_"I know it seems insignificant, but if anyone caught onto this little rumor I feel that there would be no end of grief for you." _

Hiei's eyes narrowed. Why did Kurama ALWAYS have to be right? It was getting insufferable. He gave a sidelong glance at Malfoy. Did the baka really think he had Hiei in the palm of his hand? Pathetic. Hiei gave a mental evil grin as a plan formulated. He could foresee this little development offering him a lot of amusement.

Malfoy finally stopped in front of Hiei, Crabbe and Goyle flanking him on either side.

"What's it going to be?" Malfoy said triumphantly. There was a brief silence, then…

"All this talk is making me hungry," Hiei said softly. "So very hungry… and this human food can never satisfied me. You know what I'm in the mood for?" he took a step forward, flexing his fingers as though about to do something messy. Malfoy's smug look flickered. "I haven't actually fed in a long time," Hiei went on in a deep and admittedly frightening voice. "Far too long. I hold back the urges, but sometimes I just crack under the strain. It's so very... _tempting_."

Malfoy's triumphant expression had disappeared.

"You talk of being a pureblood and you're obviously very proud of that. Perhaps I should reconsider this statement. I've found over the years that pure blood is actually the sweetest." A dreamy smile came over his face and he took another step forward. In contrast, Malfoy took a step back, causing his cronies to shift uneasily. Hiei raised his hands, the nails of which suddenly looked more like claws. Malfoy's heart constricted when the world seemed to disintegrate into a red haze around him, leaving only him and Hiei. But Hiei now looked different: he seemed ten feet tall; his teeth had lengthened into fangs and his red eyes were slit-pupiled. He grinned, showing those terrifying fangs, and flared his claws down at Malfoy.

"_Draco…"_ the voice was bloodthirsty and eager. Malfoy screamed, turned and ran as fast as he could. The red haze shattered and he was zooming out the doors of the Great Hall. The students looked up and watched him in bewilderment.

Crabbe and Goyle stared after their leader stupidly, then back at Hiei in total confusion. The demon had not moved a muscle since the word 'sweetest'.

"What's his problem?" Hiei droned, grabbing a piece of toast. Then he turned and traipsed out of the Hall, biting down hard on the bread. He wasn't the least bit worried about Malfoy now. Hiei would erase his memory of that little incident later.

* * *

Hiei returned to Hagrid's cabin at 7:30 that night. Tonight was the final decision. As he walked down the grassy slope, he saw Hagrid standing outside his door holding a crossbow in the gathering darkness of the evening. There was a pink umbrella stuck in his belt, which Hiei found extremely odd.

"Hullo, Hiei," Hagrid said cautiously as the 'vampire' drew near. Hiei jerked his head in greeting.

"So. What's it going to be?" he said, looking hopefully at the crossbow in Hagrid's giant hands.

"We're goin' into the forest," Hagrid said tersely. "However, it's not for revenge. Whatever this creature is, it doesn't belong here, an' as groundskeeper, it's my job ter get it out of here. Are yeh sure yeh want to come? I won't hesitate to tell you that this is dangerous, even for someone… well, like you."

"That's what you think," Hiei sniffed. "You don't have a clue as to what I can really do."

"And I don't think I want to know," Hagrid muttered.

_No you don't._

"Alright then, let's go." Hagrid stumped off toward the forest. Hiei glided after him on silent feet. His only unease was that he didn't have his sword, but that wasn't too big a problem. He had dealt without it before.

The first part of the hike was filled with a grim silence as the two hunters searched for signs of their prey.

"We should split up," Hiei suggested at one point, but Hagrid said starkly, "Not a chance. Remember what happened when we split up last time? I'm sure Yusuke remembers."

"I'm not Yusuke," Hiei replied. "And I'll be on my guard—"

"Absolutely not." Hiei glared at him but knew it was pointless to keep arguing. He trudged on in a sulky silence.

The two went deep into the forest, but no matter how hard they searched, they could not find their quarry. Hiei kept himself cold and focused but even with his Jagan, he couldn't find the creature. He held his patience though. He knew that the worst mistake a hunter could make was become impatient and distracted. So he kept his head clear as he flitted silently through the trees.

A while later Hiei started to pull himself onto a low-hanging tree branch when Hagrid said, "No, this is as far as we go."

Hiei looked over his shoulder and frowned down at him. "We've barely gone two miles in! That thing can't be far now!"

"No." Hagrid shook his shaggy head. "There are things in this forest that even I'm wary of. I've never gone farther in than four miles, an' I regretted it when I did. We're turning back."

"But—"

"Hiei."

"….Fine." Hiei mentally raged as he dropped to the ground and followed the half-giant back through the forest. When at last they merged from the trees, it was pitch black outside. They had been in the forest for several hours. Strange; it hadn't felt that long within the trees.

Hagrid opened the door to his hut and trumped in. He turned around in the doorway.

"Go back to the castle, Hiei." He said. Hiei folded his arms stubbornly.

"For God's sake, Hiei!" the groundskeeper exclaimed in exasperation. "This is more than petty revenge! This is dangerous! It's far too risky in there and even findin' that creature isn't worth your life. You're gutsy, kid. Too gutsy for your own good. I forbid you from going into the forest alone. Head back to the castle and get some rest." Hiei glared at Hagrid and Hagrid looked steadily back. Then Hiei spun on his heel and stalked back to the school, remarkably similar to a sulky child. But Hagrid didn't move from his doorway until he saw Hiei go through the enormous double doors. Then he stumped inside with a heavy sigh.

Good God that kid was unbelievable.

* * *

Hiei still had five more days of detention. Five more days to search. But each night he returned empty-handed, increasingly frustrated, and with a noticeable change to his friends.

Kurama tore his eyes from Professor Trelawny, who was talking about the spiritual powers of tea leaves, and stared at his friend in the chair next to him in surprise. Hiei's head was cradled in his arms on the desk. His breathing was heavy and slow. His blood-red eyes were closed. Kurama glanced at Trelawny then poked Hiei discreetly in the side. Hiei squirmed and pried his eyes open.

"Hn...?" he said sleepily.

"Were you asleep?" Kurama whispered to him in astonishment.

"No," Hiei muttered, hiding his face in his arms again. "I was just closing…my…" he trailed off and Kurama looked at him expectantly. When he got no answer, he patiently jabbed Hiei under the arm. Hiei jerked awake and straightened up.

"I'm not asleep," he snapped.

"Well that's good," Professor Trelawny said, her voice losing its dreamy quality and becoming cold. "That means you can hear me issue you extra homework on the locations of rare tea leaves in Asia." Hiei slumped in his seat, and growled when he heard Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle snicker.

* * *

"You think Hiei's okay?" Yusuke said pensively, staring at the fire demon at the Slytherin table. Kuwabara, Harry and Ron followed his gaze. Hiei was sitting by himself, as usual, at the end of the table. He was effortlessly twisting a metal fork into grotesque shapes with a blank look.

"That's kind of creepy," Ron said.

"Maybe I should go over and ask what's bugging him," Yusuke said thoughtfully.

"Okay," Ron said. "It's your funeral." Yusuke rolled his eyes and stood up. Then he blinked and sat back down.

"Wise choice," Ron said approvingly. "You should listen to me more often."

"That's not it," Yusuke said dryly. "Look." he pointed and the others looked around.

Hiei was slumped on the tabletop, head in his arms. His eyes were closed tight. The fork was a ball of scrap metal held limply in his hand. He was obviously fast asleep.

"O...kay then," Harry said blankly. Further down the table, Malfoy looked up and spotted Hiei. An evil smirk spread across his face. He whispered something to Crabbe and Goyle and the three of them stood up and headed toward the fire demon like three panthers toward a deer. As he walked, Malfoy swept a banana cream pie off the table.

"Oh no you don't," Yusuke hissed, standing up. Malfoy was only about five feet away from Hiei, who didn't stir. Malfoy glanced at Crabbe and Goyle with a malicious smile. The cronies were guffawing stupidly. Malfoy drew his arm back, pie in hand, and thrust it forward--

Then Yusuke came out of nowhere in front of the pie's path and he shoved against Malfoy's arm. The pie went flying back into Malfoy's face. Malfoy sputtered and fell back against his cronies. Most of the people at the Gryffindor table who had witnessed this scene laughed loudly. Malfoy pulled chunks of banana cream off his face and he glared at Yusuke through a mask of yellow and white. Yusuke was too busy laughing his head off to even notice this look.

"It's not nice to throw banana cream pies at people who can't defend themselves," Yusuke said after his laughter died. Malfoy bared his teeth and Crabbe and Goyle stepped forward with menacing looks. Malfoy swept a roll off a plate and hurled it furiously at Yusuke. The Spirit Detective swiftly dodged it and the roll smacked right into Fred's open mouth, as he had also been laughing at Malfoy's mishap. He spat it out and glared at Malfoy, then grabbed an ear of corn.

Next to him, George, who had also been laughing at Malfoy, was now almost choking on his laughter at his brother. Fred looked at him mutinously, then shoved the corn into his twin's open mouth. George let out a choking noise, grabbed his goblet of pumpkin juice and threw it into Fred's face. The twins glared at each other, jumped away and began throwing food at each other so fast their arms were blurs. Most of the food ended up hitting other people, who angrily picked up food and retaliated.

In less than a minute the entire Great Hall was engaged in a gigantic food fight. Hundreds of objects were flying through the air and, strangely, not just food; spoons, plates, crumpled napkins, even a couple of live and very confused chickens, wherever _they_ came from...

Kurama leaned back just as clump of black beans soared past his nose. He looked at the other berserk students with a bleak look then sighed and closed the Charms textbook he had been reading._ Am I ever going to get peace around here?_ He wondered sadly as he walked through the tornado of flying food without once getting hit and headed out the doors to the library.

And beneath the canopy of the aerial feast and the shouts and yells of the students Hiei peacefully slept on the corner of the Slytherin table, the scrap metal fork still clutched in his hand, happily oblivious of the fight that was all his fault.

* * *

It was the last day. The last chance for Hiei to find his prey. He glared at the dark trees before him and clenched his fist. Tonight. Tonight he would find it for sure.

Hagrid emerged from his cabin, looking tired and weary. His crossbow was held loosely in his hand and the pink umbrella was nowhere in sight.

"Alright, let's go," he muttered, and dragged his feet toward the forest. Hiei bounded ahead of him into the trees.

Once inside, Hiei forced his Jagan open underneath his white bandanna. He was burning with a new, fierce determination. By now the search had developed into an intense matter of pride. Hiei had never lost the prey he hunted. Never. He had found his sister, he had found the Ice Apparition Village, he had found the most powerful technique his body could ever dish out. He would find this creature as well.

An hour passed. Hagrid had fallen way behind the enthusiastic demon by now. Hiei darted through the trees and on the branches, no longer concerned if Hagrid saw him or not. Honestly, Hagrid has gotten used to Hiei's odd habits and amazing athletic ability. It was all from his vampire blood, Hagrid reasoned. Well, he wasn't far off he mark.

Hiei sprang to another tree branch nearly 20 feet off the ground and that was when he felt it. He almost lost his grip when he felt the prickling of a menacing aura.

_It's here_!

Hiei launched himself off the branch and grabbed a long, sharp stick. It was no sword, but it would have to do. He blurred to the ground and slithered through the underbrush, his senses on high alert.

There. He sensed a pulsing life force; something hostile in the trees--_right above him_.

Hiei looked up just as a large, shadowy form dropped down on him with a terrible screech. Hiei lifted the branch and thrust upward. Something warm spattered his face and arms and the screech turned to an agonized scream. The substance on his face started burning painfully. Hissing, Hiei involuntarily brought his hand to his face and the creature fell on top of him and pinned him to the ground.

"Get off!" Hiei snarled, struggling under the heavy weight.

"Hiei!? Hiei where are you!?" Hagrid was shouting. Hiei heard him crash through the underbrush and he shoved the impaled body off himself. The burning substance was slowly melting through his cloak. He quickly jerked it off and tossed it away, revealing a light-blue muscle shirt and his usual black pants.

"Hiei! What happened? Are you alright?!" Hagrid wrapped a huge hand around Hiei's entire arm and lifted him bodily onto his feet.

"I'm fine," Hiei said to him, rubbing a burning spot on his cheek with his thumb. He was glad he was wearing his bandanna: if that stuff had gotten in his Jagan, it would have been disastrous. The black cloak was hissing softly as is slowly burned up.

Hagrid looked down at the impaled creature in amazement.

"Did you do this?" he said numbly.

"Obviously," Hiei said. "But I don't think this is the same creature we've been looking for." He crouched down by his victim curiously. The thing was about the size of a great dane, with long, skeletal black limbs like the shadow from before; but this creature was bipedal, had a smaller mouth and no tail. It looked like a giant gremlin.

"You're correct," Hagrid said tersely. "This is a toxima imp. Everything about it is poisonous: its saliva, its teeth, its claws, even its blood is acidic. The fact that it's here means we've gone way deeper into the forest than we should have."

Hiei slowly straightened up with a bleak expression.

"Hiei?"

"I failed," Hiei murmured. "It got away." He looked into the dark trees before him. The shadow creature could be right in that darkness, watching them, only a few feet away…

but it wasn't. And Hiei knew it.

"Come on, Hiei, let's head back," Hagrid said. "That was a little too close for comfort." Hagrid began to trump back through the brush. Hiei stared blankly at the darkness then sighed. He followed the Care of Magical Creatures teacher without a word, too disappointed to argue.

For the first time ever, Hiei's prey had escaped him.

* * *

Dokkou: Yeah Hiei's ticked off. He was getting pretty obsessive there for a while, huh? I just had to slip in that food fight at the last minute. Hahaa... Okay! Hiei time over for now! Now it's Kurama's turn.

Next Chapter: The Poltergeist's Revenge

Summary: The hunter has always been attracted to the fox. Foxes are cunning, wily, fast, brilliant, and all in all offer a great challenge. Peeves, however, has had about enough of our resident fox and his flawless, smooth attitude. He steadily grows more and more frustrated as Kurama evades his tricks. This calls for the greatest prank in Hogwarts history: a prank to end all pranks, which will leave that fox stammering in an asylum! Ohh, revenge is sweet!!

But just how far is Peeves willing to go? And who is going to get caught in the crossfire?...

* * *


	17. The Poltergeist's Revenge

* * *

_Previously..._

_Hagrid looked down at the impaled creature in amazement._

_"Did you do this?" he said numbly._

_"Obviously," Hiei said. "But I don't think this is the same creature we've been looking for." He knelt down by his victim curiously. The thing was about the size of a german Shepard, with long, skeletal black limbs. Like the shadow from before, but it was bipedal and had no tail and a smaller mouth. It looked like a giant gremlin._

_"You're correct," Hagrid said tersely. "This is a toxima imp. Everything about it is poisonous: its saliva, its teeth, its claws, even its blood is acidic."_

_Hiei straightened up with a bleak expression._

_"I failed," he murmured. "It got away." He looked into the dark trees before him. The shadow creature could be right in that darkness…but it wasn't. And Hiei knew it._

_"Come on, Hiei, let's head back," Hagrid said. "That was a little too close for comfort." Hiei followed the Care of Magical Creatures teacher without a word._

_For the first time ever, Hiei's prey had escaped him._

* * *

Dokkou: I'm sorry that the last chapter was so... anti-climactic. But it just goes to show that this thing here is something that even Hiei can't deal with. And you are supposed to feel disappointed; now you know how Hiei felt. Anyway...

Here we go, folks! Peeves is back! And finally a Kurama-centered chapter.

* * *

The Poltergeist's Revenge

Peeves hung upside down from the rafters like a spider, waiting patiently for his prey to come close. His right hand tightened around the Object in his hand.

Footsteps. Coming closer. Peeves readied himself. A fourth-year student walked into view, reading from a piece of paper. Thus being, his brunette head was down and he didn't notice Peeves at all.

"Marco Polo!" Peeves said in a singsong voice, and he dropped the Object just as the student, Marcus, looked up.

_Splash!!_

Marcus fell backward, sputtering and dripping wet. He touched his head and felt the remains of a rubber water balloon. A pit of horror grew in his stomach. His head snapped around and he moaned upon seeing the paper, his Potions essay, soaking wet with the ink running. He glared upward.

"PEEVES!!" Marcus shouted, shaking a fist furiously at the poltergeist. Peeves cackled, blew a raspberry and vanished in a cloud of red smoke with a pop.

Marcus gingerly picked up his potions essay but despite his caution, the bottom half of the paper wetly ripped off and fell on the floor with a slimy noise. He balled his fists angrily.

"I'll get you for this, Peeves," Marcus hissed.

* * *

Meanwhile, Peeves reappeared three floors above, his laughter fading. He settled on the metal helmet of a suit of armor and sighed. He angrily noticed that his pranks were becoming less and less funny to him. Why? Oh he knew why. He clenched his fists.

Those _transfer_ students, Hiei and Kurama._ Especially_ Kurama. Peeves could already imagine the red-head's small, polite smile, but to Peeves it seemed to be secretly mocking him. Peeves howled angrily. He sprang up and crossed his legs in midair.

"Ill get you, Minamino! I'll get you!" Peeves wrung his hands together and floated across the room, the ghost equivalent to pacing. An idea sprang to him in under a minute. And the prank was big enough for multiple victims. Peeves let out a rather evil laugh and said triumphantly, "Enjoy your last hour of dignity, transfers! Things are about to get hot!"

* * *

Kurama sneezed loudly.

"Where did that come from?" Ron said.

"Not sure," Kurama replied with a sniff.

"Maybe someone is talking about you," Hermione said to him.

Yusuke laughed and said, "If he sneezed every time someone--probably a girl-- talked about him, it would look like he had allergies!" the group laughed and Kurama smiled sheepishly.

It was midday, right in the middle of lunch break. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Yusuke, Kuwabara and Kurama were sitting under the giant beech tree by the lake, finishing the remains of their lunch. Hermione and Kurama had declined any additional food, both saying they had tests to study for. The others were talking and laughing together. They were all enjoying the last of the good weather, if it could even be called that. It was overcast and slightly chilly outside, and would clearly be raining soon. That was why they were outside, taking the last chance before the stormy weather began.

Ron suddenly stopped laughing and nudged Harry in the ribs.

"What?" Harry said. Ron pointed and everyone looked around.

About twenty feet away, Hiei stalked past, hands shoved in his pockets, glaring at the ground so hard one could imagine a burn mark appear. He moodily kicked a rock as he walked past them toward the Forbidden Forest. Eventually he disappeared.

"Geez, what's been up with him, lately?" Yusuke frowned.

"Yeah he seems really mad," Kuwabara said.

"I hope he's not still mad about that bagel," Ron said with a nervous swallow. Kurama shook his head.

"He's sulking," the demon fox said to the others. "I'm not really sure about what, though. He won't tell me. But sometimes I hear him muttering 'so close' or 'failure' or something along those lines."

"That's weird," Hermione said.

"Yes well…" Kurama suddenly blinked and stiffened. The others looked at him curiously.

"What's wrong?" Harry said. Kurama put a hand on the trunk of the beech tree and immediately stood up.

"Move," he ordered.

"Huh?"

"Get up! All of you get up now!" Kurama said fiercely. The others immediately stood up, looking alarmed. "Move away, move away," Kurama pressed, pushing Hermione and Yusuke away from the tree. The others followed him until they were about twenty feet from the tree.

"What's your problem?" Yusuke said in annoyance. "It was nice there!" a faint screeching noise suddenly floated toward them; like a hundred fingers sliding down a pane of glass. Everyone looked around at the tree.

A writhing mass of small black spiders were crawling over every inch of the trunk. They were even dropping down from the branches, like little flakes of ash. Hermione let out a small scream and clutched Harry's arm, who looked disgusted.

"Whoa, that's a lot of spiders," Yusuke breathed.

Harry glanced at Kurama. "Is that why you made us move? You saw the spiders?"

"Yes," Kurama replied. "There wasn't enough time to explain. Is everyone spider-free?" Yusuke, Kuwabara, Hermione and Harry gave themselves a quick pat-down.

"Yup," Yusuke and Kuwabara said.

"We're fine," Hermione said as Harry nodded. The last voice didn't come.

"Hey," Kuwabara said with a blink. "Where did Ron go?" the group looked around and spotted a red-headed figure sprinting toward the school as though all hell was on his tail. Faint screams could reach their ears.

"Um...?" Yusuke said, sweatdropping.

"Ron doesn't really like spiders," Hermione said, hiding a smile behind her hand.

"'Doesn't like' is a bit of an understatement," Harry muttered.

"Ah, an arachnophobe." Kurama said mildly.

"A what?" Yusuke said as the five headed up to the school after Ron.

"Someone who is afraid of spiders."

"Oh."

* * *

Peeves was almost having a fit of rage as he hovered above the spider-infested tree.

"Blast!" he shrieked, punching the air. "Blast, blast, blast, blast, _blast!_!" He couldn't believe it! How could they have escaped?! How did Minamino know?! It was impossible!! He was so close! And Jaganshi had almost been there too! Peeves had carefully planned the whole thing out, hoping that Jaganshi would join his friends and become a victim as well. But no such luck. BLAST!! Peeves bit his thumbnail, his brain racing. As he watched the group reach the doors of Hogwarts, another fiendish idea occurred to him. He laughed evilly.

"You won't get away this time, my pretties!!" Peeves cackled, and he vanished.

* * *

Dinnertime at the Gryffindor table.

"Hey Harry?"

"Yeah, Yusuke?"

"What is this stuff?" the Spirit Detective poked at something in a dish.

"That's tripe."

"Tripe?" Yusuke said, pulling a face. "What the hell is that?"

"Um, well… it's cow stomach if you must know."

"AAAAGH!!" Yusuke fell off the bench, gagging and causing everyone around him to stare. Harry chuckled half-heartedly.

Kurama was sitting at the Ravenclaw table, reading a book. He could hear Yusuke's dramatic dying from across the hall and he let out a reproachful "tsk" as he flipped a page. He could also hear and sense the cluster of girls about twenty feet away, watching him avidly. He had politely asked the girls to keep their distance because he needed to concentrate on finishing this chapter for Defense Against the Dark Arts. He had asked this so politely and gallantly that the girls hadn't been at all offended by the basic request of them shoving off. Now the girls were keeping a respectful distance and whispering together.

"Shuichi is so smart…"

"He puts homework above pleasure! He's so responsible!"

"I'm going to ask him for help on my Divination homework."

"I'm going to ask him for help in my bed." There was a fit of giggles which caused Kurama to sigh audibly and close his book. The girls started to approach him, but Kurama said to them (gently of course), "It looks like I need to research more on this subject. I need all the concentration I can get."

"Oh of course, Shuichi, whatever you need!" a blond girl bubbled.

"Thank you," Kurama said, giving them a small smile and turning with an elegant, glittering sweep of his hair. The girls all squealed and went teary-eyed with admiration.

Kurama delicately rubbed his temple as he walked up the aisle to the entrance hall. Those girls were really starting to grate on his—

He paused on his step, eyes focused on Hiei, who was right about to walk into the Great Hall. Kurama opened his mouth to call out a warning when Hiei stopped too. The fire demon glanced up swiftly and took a step back. Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle suddenly appeared behind him. Hiei turned, smiled slightly and made a creepily polite "after you" motion to them.

Malfoy smirked and said, "Well that's more like it, Jaganshi." He and his cronies walked forward—and a waterfall of small rocks dropped down on their heads with a thunderous chattering noise that made everyone in the Hall jump and look around wildly. Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle screamed and put their hands over their heads. Hiei delicately stepped around the shower of gravel and swept into the hall with a bored expression. Kurama continued walking forward.

As Hiei and Kurama stepped right next to one another, the fire demon muttered, "That was pathetically predictable."

"Indeed," Kurama replied. And then they passed. Kurama walked around Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle, saying with a smile, "Pardon me." And then he was out and heading toward the library.

* * *

"Ooooh, MIXED NUTS!!" Peeves shouted. "I missed them again!!" From his lofty spot in the air, he watched Kurama walk beneath him. Peeves reached into his jester shirt and pulled out a small brown bottle with a nasty chuckle. The words 'ITCHING POWDER' blared on the front. Grinning, Peeves ripped the cap off and tipped the bottle upside down over Kurama's head.

The red-head suddenly veered, pulled a shield off a suit of armor and held it over him like an umbrella. There was a gentle hissing noise as the sand-like powder fell on the shield and slid off the sides. Kurama handed the shield back to the suit of armor, which took it with a surprised motion. The fox demon was encircled by a ring of brown powder. He glanced up at the poltergeist with an infuriatingly calm smile. Peeves sputtered in a rage beyond words.

"My, that was rather underhanded," Kurama said calmly. "I suggest you give up." And with that, he hopped over the powder ring and continued on his merry way, leaving Peeves howling above.

* * *

It was the middle of the night. Peeves was pacing in his favorite abandoned classroom in a beam of moonlight, his brain going into overdrive. The chalkboard was covered in nasty words and there was graffiti all over the walls, but even his favorite haunt couldn't cheer him up tonight.

That Minamino…he was like a fox!! A devil fox! A _demon_ fox! Blast it all… Peeves kicked a desk violently and only succeeded in giving himself a sore toe. How how how how how… Peeves settled on the ground and looked over his arsenal: Itching powder, water balloons, ink, confetti, Tabasco jawbreakers, exploding cupcakes, slime-filled eggs, silly string, skunk bombs, and a mass of other unpleasant things. For hours he stared at these things, ideas swelling then exploding in his head. He sat there until morning, and gradually heard students awakening and going down to breakfast.

And then it came to him. It was so utterly brilliant yet simple that he let out a maniacal laugh. Ohhh, Kurama, you are going to get it! And you aren't going to escape this time!! In fact, you're going to do it all yourself!!

Peeves zoomed out of the classroom with an insane laugh.

* * *

"I'm so bored," a girl with messy red hair hat went down to her earlobe muttered. She stretched her arms over her head, yawned and glanced at the other people at her Ravenclaw table. Most of the people were sitting as close as possible to Kurama, who was silently reading a book and ignoring his admirers.

"Geez, you guys, give him a break already," she grumbled. A girl nearby named Mimi who had been gazing longingly at Kurama turned and glared at her.

"Be quiet, Alex," she sneered. "Just because you have no shot at him doesn't mean you have to be jealous."

"Then you don't have a chance either because Shuichi doesn't like snotty-faced whores," Alex said with a cold smile. Mimi let out a furious noise but before she could retort, Alex went on, "What blind, idiotic single-celled organism would be stupid enough to be jealous of you?"

"Shut your mouth! At least I'm not a freak like you!" Mimi snapped.

"You bet I am!" Alex said with a huge, slightly creepy smile. "And you're not, so you SUCK!!" she stuck her tongue out.

Mimi let out a haughty sniff and turned away, nose in the air. "Freak," she muttered. Alex smirked coldly, stood up and walked out of the Great Hall. So much for some peace and quiet during dinner.

Alex headed down some random hallways until she couldn't hear any noise from the Great Hall at all.

"Ah, this is more like it," she said brightly. She sat against the wall, reached into her book bag and pulled out a book. She flipped it open and began reading. As her eyes skimmed over the content, they got bigger and bigger until finally…

"No, Artemis!! Don't go toward the light!! _Don't go toward the liiiiiight!!"_ she screamed randomly. She blinked and closed the book. "Cliffhanger!" she said cheerfully. She toyed with a lock of her short red hair, thinking about what had just happened in her book. How Artemis was about to be chopped up into little bits by the Spider Queen, then burst into maniacal laughter—huh…wait, maniacal laughter? Alex blinked and shook herself from her reverie to realize that there was real laughter echoing down the empty hallway. It sounded sickeningly familiar.

"Peeves," Alex groaned. "Wonder what he's up to now." She stood up, slipped her book into her bag and tiptoed down the hallway.

Alex pressed against the wall and slowly glanced around a corner. Ah, there he is. Peeves was rummaging in what looked like a utilities closet. Filch's utility closet.

_Oh he's busted,_ Alex thought, shaking her head_. I wonder what's going to fly out when someone opens that closet? _

Peeves reemerged holding a bucket full of black liquid and several jars of powder. He burst into an almost involuntary giggling fit that made Alex draw back uneasily.

"No escape this time," Peeves laughed. "No escape. I shall have my revenge on you, Minamino!" As if he couldn't contain himself, he exploded into high-pitched laughter. Alex edged away.

_Minamino? Wait…is this prank meant solely for Shuichi? But why?... humph, I'd better warn Shuichi about this. This prank looks really nasty. _Alex slid against the wall and hurried silently down the hallway. It took her only a few seconds to realize that she could hear footsteps other than hers. Peeves! No wait, why would Peeves walk after his victim when he could fly? Besides the footsteps were ahead of her. Alex stopped just before a corner. The footsteps had stopped. Alex took a deep breath, then jumped around the corner. She bumped hard into something—or more appropriately, someone. She and the person both fell back on the ground.

"Ow! Watch where you're going!" Alex growled.

"Why don't _you _watch where_ you're _going?" Marcus said irritably, rubbing his head. Alex stood up and dusted her robe off.

"I don't have time for this. I have to find Shuichi." She started walking away.

"To warn him about Peeves's prank?"

Alex froze and slowly turned around. Marcus had gotten back on his feet with a grim look. Alex said, "So… did you hear Peeves too?"

"Yeah," Marcus said. "I was just about to run off and warn Shuichi myself when I bumped into you."

"But…" Alex frowned. "But aren't you a Gryffindor?"

"Yeah, so?"

"Well… I dunno… you'd be helping someone from a different house."

Marcus folded his arms. "I know that. But Shuichi is a good guy. I'm not a Slytherin—I'm not going to just let him walk into a trap like that. Besides, I also want revenge on that floating menace."

"Revenge?" Alex said with a blink.

"Yeah. Yesterday Peeves dropped a water balloon on me and completely ruined my Potions essay. It took me _three days_ to finish that paper! _Three days_! And Snape gave me a detention even after I told him what happened!" Marcus clenched his fists angrily. "I'll do anything to mess up Peeves's miserable existence."

"Oooookay then," Alex said, taking a step back. "And people call me weird." she glanced down at her watch and frowned. "It's almost dinnertime. Do you think Peeves is going to make his move tonight?"

Marcus's face was grim. "I have a bad feeling that's a yes."

"Okay. Then what say we go talk to him together?" said Alex.

"Sure, but let's hurry." The two raced off down the hallway, Peeves's laughter fading behind them.

* * *

Kurama leisurely paced down the hallway toward the library, his bag bulging with books to be returned. The library was one of his favorite things about this whole school. It was huge, and had the most fascinating books he'd ever read. Not to mention all the intriguing spellbooks he had found. He had memorized all of the good spells in the books he was presently returning. He couldn't wait to try them out. Just to complete his happiness, no girls were trailing after him. Yes, life was good.

Kurama was almost right outside the door of the library when he heard footsteps approaching fast. He sighed. Yeah. Life was good. He turned cheerlessly to face the approaching people and blinked when a boy and a girl met his eyes. They stopped in front of him, panting. Kurama blinked curiously. One, the boy, was a Gryffindor named…Marcus? Yes, right. And the girl was one from his own house—one of the few girls who didn't chase after him. Alex.

"Ha," Marcus panted. "I told you…he'd be here."

"Yeah yeah….shut up," Alex gasped, putting her hands on her knees.

"I'm sorry, did you have something to say to me?" Kurama said, his interest piqued.

"Yes, we came to warn you," Alex said. Kurama frowned.

"Warn me?"

"About Peeves," Marcus said.

"What about Peeves?"

"We saw him in an abandoned hallway, plotting a huge prank he's going to play on_ you_," Alex said.

A small frown graced Kurama's flawless face. "Hm…I see. Well, thank you both for the warning." He started walking toward the library.

"Wait!" Alex cried. "Aren't you going to—do something about it?"

Kurama paused with his hand on the door. "Like what? I don't know where Peeves is planning this prank, or even what it is." He turned and, to Alex and Marcus's surprise, smiled calmly. "Don't worry. I'll be careful." And he swept into the library with a toss of his red hair.

Alex was grinding her teeth. "What?! We ran all that way just to have our warning disregarded!?"

"Who said it was disregarded?" Marcus said mildly. "He said he'd be careful."

"Yeah but that doesn't matter if he doesn't have any idea of_ what_ he's being careful of!" Alex fumed. Marcus shook his head and started walking away. After a moment, Alex followed.

"It might just be me, but I think Shuichi has a plan," Marcus said thoughtfully.

"What makes you think that?"

Marcus shrugged. "This is Shuichi we're talking about. It would be less wise to assume he doesn't have a plan than to assume he does."

* * *

An hour later, at 6:00 PM, Kurama padded out of the library, his nose buried in a book as he walked toward the Great Hall. His bag was once again filled with tomes. Normally Madam Pince, the librarian, only allowed students to take out about three books at a time, and this she did grudgingly. But Kurama was different. After a little heart-to-heart chat, Madame Pince was almost eagerly allowing Kurama to check out ten books at a time or more.

Kurama looked up upon realizing that he was in the entrance hall. The open double doors of the Great Hall were just ahead. Kurama smiled, slid his book into his bag and started walking forward.

Hermione suddenly appeared around a corner, also heading toward the Great Hall. She was poring over a book, just as Kurama had been. Kurama tilted his head and almost unconsciously looked up. His stiffened as his eyes locked with Peeves's malicious gray ones. Peeves smiled nastily at him, gave a childish wave and jerked a rope. A huge object began to fall—right on Hermione.

Kurama's bag fell to the floor.

"HERMIONE!"

Hermione didn't even have a chance to look around before something shoved her hard in the back and she fell to the floor almost ten feet away. Kurama barely managed to slide out of the way of a huge cloud of black ants that fell from the ceiling. As soon as they touched the floor they burned up and vanished.

"Over here!" a singsong voice said behind him. Kurama spun around just as something light and feathery blew into his chest. Immediately, his limbs stiffened up, like they were encased in concrete. He tried to jerk his body, but there was no reaction.

There was a loud blowing noise and a purple powder blasted against him from all sides. He clenched his teeth as the powder started burning horribly. Smoke was actually rising off the parts of his body he could see.

"Oh dear!" Peeves smiled, descending and floating cheerfully in front of Kurama. He was holding some sort of hose. "You look like you're burning up! Let me cool you down!" the smile turned evil and Peeves twisted the head of the hose. A jet of black liquid sprayed out and Kurama sputtered as it covered him head to toe. Peeves spun in the air, laughing his head off. "And for the finishing touch!!" Peeves pulled out a box and threw a cloud of feathers and glitter all over the red-head.

The black substance was no longer black. It was turning a rainbow of colors; one second Kurama was purple; the next, green; the next, pink.

"I call it, Kurama a la Mess!" Peeves finally couldn't contain himself; he positively exploded into shrieks of laughter.

His voice was the only one in the entire Great Hall and Entrance Hall combined. Hundreds upon hundreds of eyes were glued either to Peeves or, more likely, Kurama. And Kurama was a rather pitiful sight; he was dripping in rainbow ink, glitter, burning powder and feathers. His previously red hair was soaking wet and limp. Despite all of this, he was staring at Peeves with an almost creepy blank look. He struggled hard and managed to raise his arm. Then he flicked it down and a blend of glitter, ink, powder, and feathers spattered Peeves across the face. Peeves stopped laughing, blinked then burst into mocking hoots. He zoomed upward and disappeared through the ceiling. His laughter echoed for a long time around the silent castle. All of the students who had witnessed this atrocity were completely frozen and mute. Not even any of the Slytherins were laughing at the demon fox; not even Malfoy.

"KURAMA!" Kurama blinked slowly and forced his head around to see Yusuke, Kuwabara and Hiei run up to him.

"Oh man!" Kuwabara shouted miserably. "That looked nasty! Are you okay?"

As if by some strange, secret switch, Kurama jerked all over and straightened up calmly, still with that blank look.

"Yes. I am fine."

"That little rat!!" Yusuke shouted, clenching his fist. "I'll make him pay for that! I'll make his life a living hell!" He blinked when Kurama shook his head. He was still dripping ink all over the place. A rainbow puddle was forming underneath him.

"Don't, Yusuke. You're doing badly enough in your classes without devoting all your time to revenge on Peeves." Kurama lifted his hands, which were now green from the ink. To everyone's shock, he smiled. "I'm perfectly alright."

"Kurama?" a tentative voice said. The tantei looked around to Hermione, who was standing in a stupor nearby. She was squeezing her book to her chest and staring at Kurama with guilty eyes. There was a small purple bruise on her cheek from where she had fallen. "You…you saved me… you sacrificed yourself for me. Thank… Thank you."

"That was the poltergeist's plan all along," Hiei droned, drawing everyone's attention. "Peeves knew Kurama had a kind heart, and he exploited it. He set the prank up purposefully because he _knew_ Kurama would be foolish enough to push Granger out of harm's way. Clever, I must admit."

Hermione looked down at the ground miserably. "So…it was all my fault?"

"Don't be silly," Kurama smiled at her. "I would have pushed anyone out of the way of Peeves's fire." Hermione didn't look convinced.

Kurama sighed and looked around the Hall. All eyes were still trained on him in horror. "I'm going to go get cleaned up," he said mildly, flicking glitter and feathers off his arm. He turned and dragged himself out of the Hall, a rainbow trail following him. Filch wasn't going to like that.

"Oh Shuichi!" A teary voice wailed behind him. Kurama's shoulders sagged as he looked around and saw his fanclub (now up to about thirty girls) all running toward him. Only the fact that he was a sticky, potentially-hair-messing-up mess prevented them from hugging him.

"Shuichi that was so scary!" A blond cried, tears flowing down her face. "Peeves is so mean! Are you okay?"

"You were so brave, pushing Granger out of the way like that!" another girl gushed.

"I would have done it for anyone," Kurama said, causing all of the girls to either sigh and squeal.

"I'll help you clean up," A black-haired girl cried.

"No I will!" The blond said, pushing the black-haired girl.

"No I will! Kurama likes me more so he prefers my help!"

"Here's a better idea," a deep, murderous voice said behind the group. The girls all let out squeaks and looked around fearfully. Hiei was standing only feet away, arms crossed, red eyes burning dangerously. "The best help you can give Kurama is to shut your mouths and stop making his eardrums bleed. So why don't you run along before I cut your voice boxes out?" The girls screamed and bolted away in a cloud of dust. Hiei's gaze switched to Kurama, who sighed and spat out a feather.

"Thank you, I suppose," the demon fox said. Hiei scowled.

"I had to step in. You don't have the spine to turn those drooling ningen onnas away. Now... I have a question for you."

"And what would that be?" The fire demon circled so that he stood obstinately in front of Kurama. He was frowning at the fox demon in a half-accusing half-confused way.

"Why?" Hiei said shortly. "You knew Peeves was there. You saw the prank before it even started. Why, why _why_ did you just walk into it anyway?" the apparition glared at him.

Kurama slowly held up an ink-covered finger and lightly tapped the end of Hiei's nose. The fire demon jerked back as the tip of his nose turned blue. He rubbed it irritably.

"I did it because, first of all, if I hadn't walked into the trap, someone else would have, and they wouldn't have taken it as well as I did," the fox said softly. He held up two fingers. "Second, I couldn't just stand by and let Hermione walk into that trap when I had the power to stop it."

"Foolish heart," Hiei growled.

Kurama held up three fingers. "Last, if Peeves didn't get me this time, he would just keep trying, and you can bet that the pranks only would have gotten bigger and more dangerous. I also don't want to be dodging him for the rest of the year. I have better things to focus on."

Hiei folded his arms and looked at the dripping demon before him with a look of incredulous respect. Then he shook his head.

"Alright. That's enough reason for me. I'm just surprised you're taking this so calmly. I know you were expecting it, but I also expected you to plot revenge."

"Revenge doesn't concern me," Kurama smiled, and playfully flicked ink onto Hiei's face. "I know that it only leads to more pain and frustration. That's something you could stand to learn as well." Hiei slowly reached a hand up and wiped his face off with a look of disgust. He was about to flick the ink back when he paused. He lowered his hand and glared at Kurama, who was now green all over.

"I'm going to wash this stuff off before it dries and sticks to me permanently," Kurama said, walking past the fire apparition. "See you around."

Hiei stayed standing in the hallway long after Kurama's wet footsteps faded. He stared at the ink on his fingers, scowled, and disappeared in a black blur.

* * *

Dokkou: Ah Kurama. You gotta love him. Okay, a lot of you had comments and questions about Hiei pretending to be a vampire so...

Next Chapter: Human, Demon... or Vampire? or... The Acoustic Cathedral

Summary: Due to a nasty slip-up in potions class, Hiei's demon form is partially revealed. Now Harry, Ron and Hermione are determined to find out who--or _what_--Hiei really is.

And they just might do it too.

* * *


	18. Human, Demon, Or Vampire?

_Previously...  
_

_"I had to step in. You don't have the spine to turn those drooling ningen onnas away. Now... I have a question for you."_

_"And what would that be?" The fire demon circled so that he stood obstinately in front of Kurama. He was frowning at the fox demon in a half-accusing half-confused way._

_"Why?" Hiei said shortly. "You knew Peeves was there. You saw the prank before it even started. Why, why __why did you just walk into it anyway?" the apparition glared at him._

_Kurama slowly held up an ink-covered finger and lightly tapped the end of Hiei's nose. The fire demon jerked back as the tip of his nose turned blue. He rubbed it irritably._

_"I did it because, first of all, if I hadn't walked into the trap, someone else would have, and they wouldn't have taken it as well as I did," the fox said softly. He held up two fingers. "Second, I couldn't just stand by and let Hermione walk into that trap when I had the power to stop it."_

_"Foolish heart," Hiei growled._

_Kurama held up three fingers. "Last, if Peeves didn't get me this time, he would just keep trying, and you can bet that the pranks only would have gotten bigger and more dangerous. I also don't want to be dodging him for the rest of the year. I have better things to focus on."_

_Hiei folded his arms and looked at the dripping demon before him with a look of incredulous respect. Then he shook his head._

_"Alright. That's enough reason for me. I'm just surprised you're just taking this so calmly. I know you were expecting it, but I also expected you to plot revenge."_

_"Revenge doesn't concern me," Kurama smiled, and playfully flicked ink onto Hiei's face. "I know that it only leads to more pain and frustration. That's something you could stand to learn as well." Hiei slowly reached a hand up and wiped his face off with a look of disgust. He was about to flick the ink back when he paused. He lowered his hand and glared at Kurama, who was now green all over._

_"I'm going to wash this stuff off before it dries and sticks to me permanently," Kurama said, walking past the fire apparition. "See you around."_

_Hiei stayed standing in the hallway long after Kurama's wet footsteps faded. He stared at the ink on his fingers, scowled, and disappeared in a black blur._

* * *

Dokkou: You guys are bummin' me out. Sorry I didn't put in the name "Shuichi" enough, but I don't always want to write "Shuichi". "Kurama" is so much better. Okay, how 'bout this... Yusuke, Harry, and the others close to Kurama can call him Kurama but no one else does? Okay? Well if not, too bad.

Yes I KNOW that lately it's been rather Hiei-centered. I've been puzzling over some chapters about Yusuke and the others so gimme a break. School and volleyball practice have been rough and I've hardly had any time on the computer. Plus my laptop just broke--it won't even turn on, so I have to go shopping for a new one. In the meantime, struggle through this chapter if you can hold down your lunch. Yes it's Hiei-centered but only because it's a good comedy chappie and it was in high demand and I WANTED TO WRITE IT. (goes and sulks in emo corner)

* * *

Human, Demon…or Vampire?

or...

Melodies in the Acoustic Cathedral

"Everyone shut up," Snape said coldly, terminating the last shreds of conversation which had just been going on. All the Slytherin and Gryffindor fifth years looked at him attentively. "Today," Snape went on, "we will be concocting the Revelation Elixir. This is a handy little potion for exposing impostors, especially those that use the Polyjuice potion." He glanced at Harry coldly as he said this. Harry looked mutinously back. "This potion does not have many ingredients, nor is very difficult to complete; therefore even the most _simple-minded_ of you should be able to do this one acceptably at the very least." Neville swallowed. Snape's lip curled. "Instructions are on the board. All the ingredients you will need are in the cabinet. You have one hour to finish. Begin." There was the scuffling of dozens of chairs as the students stood and filed to the ingredients cabinet.

Ten minutes later, Harry and Ron were sweating over their steaming cauldron.

"Wait, does it say to put four or five blades of lemon grass in?" Ron said nervously, his hand full of grass hovering over the cauldron.

"Uuum..." Harry squinted at the board. "It says 'Put in four lemon grass stalks after stirring the concoction seven times clockwise.' We did stir seven times clockwise, right?"

Ron gave him a blank look. Harry moaned and looked at the bubbling liquid inside the pot. It was a turquoise color, several shades off the sky-blue color it was supposed to be.

A couple of seats away, Hermione was stirring a perfectly sky-blue potion.

Yusuke and Kuwabara were doing even worse than Ron and Harry. Yusuke scratched his head as he looked blankly at his fistful of lemon grass, shrugged, and dropped it all into the cauldron. The potion let out a hiss and Yusuke jumped back. Harry sweatdropped.

"Yeah good luck with that," he muttered sarcastically.

Hiei carefully dropped a pinch of yellow powder into his red potion. It bubbled violently and slowly turned a dark blue color. A particularly large bubble popped and a drop of the potion sailed out of the cauldron onto Hiei's wrist. He hissed and stepped back in pain, rubbing the spot vigorously. When he took his hand away, the spot was green--the exact green his demon skin was. Hiei glanced around, but no one had noticed his odd reaction_. Good,_ he thought, pulling his sleeve down over the green spot, _there's no telling of the chaos that would be caused if anyone saw my demon form._ He would have to be more cautious. He stirred the potion slowly, careful not to spill a single drop on himself. Not only would it blow his cover, but it _hurt_ too.

Hiei jerked when a small explosion sounded behind him. He spun around, fists raised slightly, but lowered then upon seeing the pathetic Gryffindor boy, Neville, cowering away from his cauldron. His potion was a neon orange color. His fearful face was blackened by the explosion. Snape swept over like a giant bat of doom and sneered down at Neville's pathetic concoction.

"What color is the potion supposed to be, Longbottom?" Snape said with quiet mirth.

"L-light blue, Professor." Neville stuttered, abashed.

"And what color is it?"

"…Orange, Sir…"

"Indeed. About as far from light blue as you can get. Of course you still have ten minutes to fix it, but I highly doubt you could fix it even if it was only one ingredient off." Several Slytherins, including Malfoy, laughed audibly. Neville blushed a deep pink color. Smirking, Snape floated away.

Once he was out of earshot, Hermione leaned over to Neville and said wisely, "You forgot to add the Iboga seeds in step seven." Neville looked at her miserably.

"Please," he begged, "help me!" Hermione glanced at Snape, saw his back was turned, and nodded.

Hiei slowly dipped a ladle into his cauldron and with the caution of a nuclear scientist poured the blue substance into a small glass bottle. He didn't release his held breath until he shoved the cork in deep. Success. Hiei smirked as he walked up to Snape's desk and set it on the dark wooden surface. Snape arched an eyebrow.

"Done already, Jaganshi?" Snape said softly. "Hope you didn't get any on yourself. Heaven knows how dreadful that would be."

"Good thing I didn't get any on myself then," Hiei said coldly then turned and started walking back to his seat.

Sweating, Neville poured some of the dark blue potion into his glass beaker. It wasn't perfect, but it was better than orange.

"Thank you," he whispered to Hermione, who nodded slightly. Neville headed toward Snape's desk. He stiffened when he saw that Hiei was going to end up walking right past him.

_Stay calm,_ Neville thought nervously, _stay calm, he won't do anything to you, even though he's creepy. _

Neville and the apparition were five feet away. Malfoy glanced at Crabbe and Goyle with a malicious grin and inconspicuously stuck his foot out, which Neville promptly tripped over.

The cork-less beaker of Revelation Elixir flew out of his hand. Hiei watched it arch through the air—straight at him. He swiftly backpedaled out of the way—then bumped into something that stopped him dead. He glanced over his shoulder and saw a table blocking him.

_Damn!_ Hiei looked around just in time to see the potion splash all over his front and watch the bottle shatter loudly on the floor. The entire class looked up from their work in alarm.

"Watch it, you klutz!" Hiei hissed furiously at Neville, shaking potion off his arm. It spattered the floor. Neville scrambled to his feet, his cheeks cherry red.

"S-s-sorry!" He squeaked. "It was an accident! I'm so sorry!"

Hiei's expression turned murderous. "You're going to be sorry when I get through with—" he broke off as smoke began rising from his cloak and exposed flesh. He looked down at his arms in horror. They were turning olive green… and burning like hell.

Hiei stiffened up with a gasp of pain. His eyes widened as his nails lengthen into claws. He could feel his teeth growing into fangs. He fell back against the table and slid to the floor, twitching in pain. He squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his jaws. The students all began to talk and stand up, trying to figure out what was happening. They looked at Hiei in horror as his arms and face developed unnatural green patches.

"Hiei! Are you okay? What happened?" the apparition forced his eyes open—the whites of which were now yellow—to barely see Yusuke and Kuwabara kneel in front of him through the smoke that was coming off his own body. They pulled him into a shaky stand. Hiei was involuntarily twitching all over, and the Spirit Detectives looked at him worriedly.

"Dear dear," Snape said softly. "I believe Mr. Jaganshi needs to go the hospital wing."

"Let go," Hiei growled, pulling out of his friends' grip. He almost collapsed but managed to fall against the wall; his claws made small gouges in the stone. He shakily pushed the door of the dungeon open and dragged himself out of it, leaving a spattered trail of blue potion. Yusuke and Kuwabara started to follow him when Snape said coldly, "And where do you think you two are going?"

"We have to help him!" Yusuke snapped, making all the students' eyes widen in shock. No one snapped at Snape unless they had a death wish. With one last scowl, Yusuke and Kuwabara ran out of the room, closing the heavy door behind them with a bang. Snape didn't even have a chance to open his mouth and issue them a month of detention.

There was a long silence in the dungeon. Snape stood and stalked over to Neville's potion.

"Just as I suspected," he said scornfully. "It may be the right color, but this potion has obviously become some sort of acid. Congratulations, Longbottom, you created a new poison. Unfortunately for you, that was not what we were supposed to be making, therefore you get an F. I'm sure Jaganshi will be pleased to hear that." He waved his wand and the potion in the cauldron vanished. He moodily went back to his desk, leaving Neville in a whirl of confusion, guilt and shock.

The bell suddenly rang, breaking the stupor in the room. The students quickly turned in their multi-colored potions to Snape's desk and headed out the classroom. Neville looked downright miserable.

"I can't believe I'm saying this," Ron said as he, Harry and Hermione cleaned up their workspaces, "but, poor Hiei. That looked really painful."

"_I_ can't believe Neville created an acid," Harry said thoughtfully. "Of course I'm sure he didn't do it on purpose."

"He couldn't have," Hermione mumbled. Ron and Harry looked at her.

"Eh?"

She frowned at the two of them and whispered, "I helped Neville make that potion. I just can't believe that I got it so wrong…"

"This is Neville we're talking about, Hermione," Ron said. "Even when he follows directions he does something wrong." But Hermione was shaking her head. Almost everyone had left the room. Snape was nowhere in sight.

"Maybe…" Hermione murmured. She walked over and knelt next to the shattered remains of Neville's beaker. In one of the larger glass fragments was a tiny puddle of the blue potion. She reached her hand toward it.

"Hermione don't touch that stuff!" Harry cried. "It's acid!" But it was too late. Hermione's index finger had delicately dipped into the tiny pool. Hermione held it there for a long moment, Ron and Harry watching tensely. Then she pulled it out and held it up. A drop covered the end of her finger. She stood up and held it out to her friends.

"It doesn't hurt," she said to them. "Not at all."

"Really?" Ron said, hesitantly touching the blue drop on her finger. "Hey, you're right. I feel fine."

"That's weird," Harry frowned. "Maybe Hiei had an allergic reaction to whatever was in the potion?"

"That's possible," Hermione said, but the expression on her face informed Harry that her thoughts were elsewhere.

"It's the only explanation!" Ron said. "Unless you think Hiei really isn't human and was turning into—" he broke off and the three looked at each other in astonishment. "I was right!" Ron shouted triumphantly. "Hiei IS a vampire!" His smile turned to a look of horror. "Oh my God…_Hiei is a vampire_!! The signs have pointed to it all along! We've got to tell Dumbledore! No wait… he probably already knows… but then why would he let him into the school!? What are we going to do?!" he turned to his friends, wide-eyed.

"Now hold on just a second," Harry said, holding up his hands. "Just because Hiei reacts weirdly to a potion doesn't mean he's a vampire."

"But what about when he bit Yusuke in the Forbidden Forest?" Ron demanded.

"He was sucking poison out! He was saving Yusuke's—"

"And what about when he shoved that garlic bagel away from me?" Ron cut in roughly.

"Well geez, Ron," Hermione said, "If you had shoved a bagel into my face I would have gotten really mad too—"

"And," Ron said, raising his voice, "What about Hiei's eyes? _They're red!!_ Explain that?!" Harry and Hermione opened their mouths but nothing came out. They looked at each other blankly.

"Contacts?" Harry said weakly. Ron snorted, extinguishing the suggestion.

"I think I've got enough proof." Ron whispered to them.

"I think we should do one final test." Hermione said.

"Like what?"

"Well, we should look up vampires in the library and find out some stuff about them—they're habits, strengths and weaknesses, and if Hiei fits the description then we'll have our proof."

"Maybe we should just ask him," Harry suggested.

"Oh right," Ron said sarcastically. "And what do you think Hiei will do once we let him know we know his little secret?"

"Errm…"

"He'll get rid of us!" Ron exploded, clutching his throat. "We'd be witnesses! He wouldn't risk his secret getting out and he'd suck us dry! And maybe hypnotize us! I hear vampires can do that too…"

"Alright let's not lose out heads," Hermione said tersely. "Let's be absolutely sure before we point fingers."

"To the library!" Ron shouted, shoving his fist in the air and bounding out the door.

"Ron!! Wait! What about Divination class?!"

* * *

Hiei leaped up onto a stone ledge about twenty feet off the ground. A statue had previously inhabited the spot but it was now gone. He settled against the wall with a sigh. He pulled his sleeves up and looked at his arms. The green color had faded almost entirely, leaving only the feeling of a minor sunburn. For the dozenth time Hiei cursed the clumsy Gryffindor who had caused him that pain.

After leaving Snape's class, Hiei had not gone to the hospital wing. He recalled his conversation with Yusuke and Kuwabara...

FLASHBACK

"Hiei!" Yusuke exclaimed, catching up with the staggering demon. Hiei pitched against a wall, hugging his burning arms. The stone felt wonderfully cool against his cheek.

"Are you okay?" Kuwabara said with true concern.

"Do I look okay?" Hiei growled. His face was now completely green. His ears had turned pointed and the whites of his eyes were a sharp yellow color. His claws were digging into the fabric of his robe's sleeves. For Yusuke, this brought back bad memories of their first less-than-friendly meeting. He quickly looked around to make sure no one could see the full-blooded demon then said, "Well...no."

"Stupid Gryffindor klutz," Hiei muttered, rubbing his arms. "I can't believe I didn't dodge that." He let out a long breath and closed his eyes. He felt Yusuke's hand on his shoulder.

"Maybe you should go to the hospital wing," the Spirit Detective said.

"What? Are you nuts?" Kuwabara scowled at him. "You want Madame Pomfrey to find out that he's a demon?"

"Oh right," Yusuke said, smacking his forehead. "Well this sucks..."

"Look, I'm fine," Hiei said to them, straightening shakily.

Kuwabara gave him a hawk-gaze. "But you just said you weren't okay."

Hiei glared at him and started to drag himself down the hallway. "Leave me alone. I can recover by myself."

"But--" the Spirit Detective began.

"Yusuke." Hiei interrupted softly. "I'll be fine. Don't doubt me." Yusuke shut his open mouth. He folded his arms with a frown.

"Fine. But you'd better not collapse or anything like that." Hiei gave him a humorless smile and gingerly walked away down the hallway. Yusuke watched until he was out of sight. Then he turned to Kuwabara. "Well, now what?" he said. "I don't want to go back to Snape's class. He'll probably kill us."

Kuwabara put a hand thoughtfully to his chin. Then he grinned. "Wanna go see if we can get any brooms out of the broomshed and go for a ride?"

"Yeah!" Yusuke said enthusiastically, and the two raced off down the hallway.

END FLASHBACK

Since their meeting, Hiei had retired to a dark, peaceful spot and stayed there for the rest of the afternoon, body tight with pain. He could do little more than sit and endure it, and wait for his skin to change back to normal. But even now, at ten o' clock PM, traces of olive green still remained. He had skipped his other classes and dinner, not prepared to face the humans' scrutinizing gazes. He wasn't really hungry anyway.

Hiei tried to get comfortable on the ledge, but it was nigh impossible, what with the lingering burns. So with an angry growl, Hiei jumped down and stalked down the dark, silent hallway.

Shafts of moonlight streaming in from the high arched windows provided enough light for Hiei to move confidently by. For a long hour he haunted the black corridors of the enormous castle without direction or purpose. His feet just took him one step at a time around the school.

He was on the seventh floor when he finally felt a flare of anger. As he passed a stretch of blank stone wall, he punched the air furiously.

_I hate it here! I'm so bored! This is worse than being cooped up in that stupid city on probation. At least then no one was telling me what to do._ Hiei paced back and forth before the blank wall, randomly throwing some kicks and punches_. But now, oh no, not only am I being bossed around by a bunch of ignorant little ningens, but they're forcing me to pass myself off as one of their own filthy race!_ Hiei stomped his foot, causing several small cracks in the floor. He ground his teeth.

_I wish…I wish there was something I could do to burn some energy and keep me from going crazy from boredom. Something challenging, something tricky. _Hiei snorted bitterly as he dragged his feet down the hallway. _Yeah, like that's going to happen in this hellhole._

Strange things happen in this world sometimes. Especially at Hogwarts.

A low grating noise interrupted Hiei's thoughts. He spun around with a blink to see the blank stone wall changing. Something was coming up out of it; something large and rectangular. The ground shuddered beneath the demon's feet and the noise increased.

Hiei stepped back and craned his neck to see a thirty-foot-high black door jut out from the previously blank wall. Designs of screaming humans, snarling monsters, graceful dragons, serene trees, and winding rivers adorned its entire surface. Hiei let out a long breath, unable to not feel impressed. He stepped forward and lightly brushed the door's surface. It was cold to the touch, and seemed to be made out of black iron. Hiei slowly paced in front of it, his eyes glued to the intricate designs.

What on earth could be on the other side? Hiei's curiosity was skyrocketing. The demon glanced all around him but saw no one else. He wrapped his hand around the doorknob, which was shaped like a skull, and turned it.

The door swung inward on wailing hinges, revealing a wall of darkness. Hiei stood motionless for just a second, then, almost against his better judgment, stepped inside.

The shadows engulfed him like cold wafts of air. The door closed behind him with a menacing creak, leaving the demon in total darkness.

_Light would be nice,_ Hiei thought vaguely. Suddenly to his surprise, a bright light turned on above him. Hiei screwed his eyes shut. _Not that bright!_

The light dimmed considerably and turned a faint blue color, allowing Hiei to open his eyes and get a good look around. He drew in a deep breath at what he saw.

The room he was in had high arched ceilings like a cathedral. A gothic cathedral. Towering bookcases loomed on either side of the small demon, filled to the brim with dark volumes. Crouched on top of several marble columns were snarling stone gargoyles. Punching bags, barbells, and other weight-trainers were sitting in a corner. Hiei walked between these relics in wonder. He drew his fist back and socked one of the many hanging punching bags experimentally. To his satisfaction it did not break, only swung back and forth on its chain.

"So what?" Hiei said out loud, "are you like a wishing room? What ever I want will appear?"

Of course nothing answered him. Hiei closed his eyes and imagined a rack of swords. He opened his eyes and a grin spread across his face.

Sitting in front of him was an elaborately decorated Japanese rack of katanas. Feeling giddy, Hiei pulled one off the rack and slid it out of its black sheath. It came out with a smooth, metallic _shiiiik. _Hiei swung and jabbed with it a couple of times and reveled in its balance, lightness, and familiarity. He'd forgotten how much he missed his sword. He swung it at the punching bag and smirked when the bag's cleanly-cut bottom half fell and landed on the floor in a burst of sand. He set the sword back on the rack and turned around, feeling happier than he had in a long time.

That was when he spotted something in a dark corner by a bookcase. He approached it and realized it was a large guitar leaning on a metal stand. It was oddly removed from everything else in the room. Its surface was a deep black color, scattered with purple dots that formed the vague outline of a roaring, serpentine dragon. It was rather beautiful to look at. Hiei carefully picked it up and ran his fingers down the strings. It let out a melodious chord that echoed around the cathedral-like room. Hiei felt an unexpected tingle of eagerness. He strummed the guitar a couple more times in various lengths and reveled in the clear notes. He had never played a musical instrument before nor had any interest in it. But now that he had the actual thing in his hands, he felt that excitement that all people feel when holding an instrument of Possibilities.

For a long while Hiei just had fun mixing and matching the notes together. _How simple,_ he thought smugly. _I always thought the guitar was a complex instrument to play, but it's not. I wonder if there's a book anywhere that can teach me to play songs._ He glanced at the bookcases around him and his eye just happened to catch a large book that blared, The Art of Playing the Guitar: A Step-By-Step Guide. Hiei pulled the book off the shelf and flipped it open. His smirk faded fast as he scanned its contents. He frowned at the complicated diagrams and pictures on the pages.

_What?! According to this I wasn't playing it right!_ _I wasn't even holding it right! _Hiei sat in a large purple bean bag chair (that conveniently came out of nowhere) and pored over the tome with a frown. Then he once again picked up the guitar but this time followed the book's pictures of the correct way to hold the instrument. It was a lot harder this time, but Hiei stubbornly persisted at it.

Fifteen minutes of incorrect chords, fragmented notes, and a confusing directions led to a very frustrated fire demon. But he felt a burning desire to keep practicing, to keep learning. It was rather like a cowboy lusting after a wild stallion, trying time and time again to catch it but always just barely missing his chance.

_Well I got my wish,_ the demon ruminated, _I wanted something challenging and tricky, and I got it. Heh. This might just turn out to be fun. _

* * *

It was 1:00 AM by the time the demon finally set the guitar back on the stand. He stretched back and popped his stiff back.

"That guitar is tougher than I thought," he murmured. He flexed his fingers and winced. Pressing the strings down had put a lot of pressure directly on the bones. They were very sore now. Hiei straightened and looked at the musical instrument sitting innocently on its stand. He scowled. "You haven't beaten me," he said to it. "I'll be back, and I am going to conquer you." And with that solemn promise, he spun on his heel and stalked back to the giant iron door.

He stepped outside and after a quick look-around to check that the coast was clear, he set out into the hallway.

_But how am I going to hide this room?_ Hiei thought. He turned around to look at the door pensively and his eyes widened. The door was shrinking in front of his very eyes; in less than a minute, the secret entrance had disappeared, leaving only blank wall.

_Huh….convenient. I wonder what I should call it? _He thought for a long moment and an idea came to him almost immediately._ The Acoustic Cathedral. Yes, perfect._

Hiei set off down the dark hallway and a thought flashed through his mind about telling Yusuke, Kuwabara and Kurama about this discovery. They wouldn't laugh at him for playing a musical instrument….well, Kurama wouldn't laugh at him….too hard…probably…

Hiei shuddered and immediately dismissed the idea.

No, this would be his little secret.

* * *

Kurama walked into the Great Hall with a yawn. He'd been up rather late last night studying for a test in Astronomy and he was all too ready for breakfast. It was barely seven o' clock AM, meaning that very few people were in the Great Hall. Kurama sat at the mercifully low-populated Ravenclaw table and helped himself to a bagel. As he spread cream cheese on it he happened to look up and spot Hiei bounding into the Hall.

Whoa back up—_bounding?! _

Yes, bounding. Kurama watched in amazement as the little demon hopped and sat at the empty Slytherin table. Hiei picked up a piece of toast and dreamily began tearing it into little chunks. Kurama realized that he was staring at Hiei and he shook his head. He stood up and discreetly made his way over to the demon. When he got close enough he became conscious of Hiei humming softly under his breath.

"Erm…good morning, Hiei."

The humming stopped. The demon turned around in his seat, his face a mask of indifference.

"Hn." Kurama blinked, wondering if he'd imagined the humming. Maybe he had imagined the entire good mood.

"Did you have a good night?" Kurama said.

"Not particularly. I didn't sleep well so I walked around the school for a while."

"You should be careful about doing that," Kurama frowned. "What if someone in the Slytherin house wakes up and realizes you're missing? You could cause a big commotion."

"Those pathetic ningens don't notice anything unless it's right in front of their faces."

"You underestimate them, Hiei," Kurama said lightly. He looked around and spotted Harry and Ron come into the hall. Their faces were unusually grim. To Kurama's slight surprise, they walked over to him and Hiei.

"Morning," Harry said cheerfully to them. Too cheerfully. Kurama's eyes narrowed slightly.

"Good morning," he said carefully. He noticed their eyes shift momentarily to Hiei.

"Hey Hiei, I was rooting through an old trunk in the Gryffindor tower and check out what I found," Ron said, and he pulled out a decrepit wooden cross. Hiei looked at it blankly, opened his mouth to say something but froze when an unpleasant smell came off the wooden object. He pulled back and covered his nose.

"Ugh, that thing smells disgusting!" Hiei said in revulsion. "Like it's been soaking in bleach and hundred-year-old perfume."

"I have to agree," Kurama said, covering his sensitive nose as well. "Where did you say you found it?" Harry and Ron looked at each other, wide-eyed.

"Ahhh," Ron said uneasily, pulling the cross back. "Well… um…"

"_What are you two doing_?!" A furious, slightly panicky voice said behind them. They spun around to see Hermione, glaring at them and glancing at Hiei anxiously. She grabbed Harry and Ron by the arms and laughed, "Oh sorry if they bugged you, guys!" she said to Hiei and Kurama. "Well, we'll just be going now! Bye!" And she towed the two boys away to the Gryffindor table.

Once at a safe distance she threw herself in a seat and glared at the boys.

"What were you thinking?!" She hissed. "You might as well just ask him if he's a vampire!"

"We were just doing an experiment!" Ron said, showing her the cross. "Everyone knows vampires can't stand holy stuff! And it was proof positive! He didn't like it! He said it stank!"

"But so did Kurama," Harry added.

"Well…yeah…" Ron sniffed the cross and pulled away with a noise of disgust. "Ew they were right! This thing does stink!"

"There is more than one way to distinguish a vampire," Hermione said sagely. She reached into the bag slung over her shoulder and pulled out a thick book. "I got this book from the library this morning. It's all about vampires; their strengths and weaknesses, their history, everything."

"What's it say?" Ron said. Hermione flipped the book and began reading, "Vampires are immune to most diseases and almost invincible to mortal weapons, but they became vulnerable when move around during the day or when they rest in coffins. Vampires also boast very pale skin and perfect complexions. They possess an aura of striking attractiveness and also a dark, mysterious attitude."

Ron swallowed. "That sounds pretty close to Hiei so far."

Hermione continued in a hurried whisper, "Vampires also have the ability of exerting their will over their victims, which explains why many victims don't remember being attacked or witnessing anything out of the ordinary."

"Care of Magical Creatures class!" Harry cried. "Remember when we met Will and Hiei did that weird spell?" Hermione and Ron looked at him blankly. "Hiei did some sort of spell," Harry said to them. "He changed our memories or something, I just remember fragments of Will—the rest of it is just blank patches."

"Yeah now that I think about that…" Ron said as he rubbed his chin, his eyes wide. "Oh man..."

Hermione returned to the book, now looking slightly fearful. "Vampires are ten times stronger and faster than humans, making them some of the most powerful creatures in the magical world. Thus being, most are...are scornful of humans and closely related creatures."

"Ningens," Harry said hoarsely. "He always calls us ningens. He always calls us _humans_." He collapsed into the chair next to Hermione. "Does anyone else notice that this book is describing Hiei to a T?" The three friends sat in a numb silence for a long moment. The noise of the students around them seemed distant and irrelevent, like a movie going on in the background.

"Do you think Kurama is a vampire too?" Harry said eventually in a low voice. "I mean, he doesn't seem to have the same signs, but maybe he just hides it better than Hiei."

"No," Hermione said in horror. "Kurama can't be a vampire! He's too nice! In fact, maybe he himself doesn't even know about what Hiei is."

"I doubt that," Harry said doubtfully. "Those two seem really close, and Kurama is really smart. How could he not know?"

"We have to do something," Ron said hoarsely. "We have to _tell_ someone! What if Hiei attacks someone?" His eyes widened in horror. "Guys, what if he's working for You-Know—"

"Ahem." The three looked around and stiffened as they found themselves mere inches away from Hiei and Kurama. The demons were staring at the three of them curiously.

"Yes?" Hermione said in a high-pitched voice.

"The three of you looked rather pale just now," Kurama said. "Is something wrong?"

"No no, we're fine," Ron rasped. "I mean, we're not great, we certainly wouldn't make good meals for some monster that wanted to eat us, no way. We're way too scrawny—" Hermione elbowed him with a forced smile. Hiei and Kurama glanced at each other.

"What are you reading?" Kurama said curiously, spying the book behind Hermione. She swiftly grabbed it and slammed its covers shut.

"Oh just some stuff!" She said in a high, happy voice.

"What sort of stuff?" Kurama said.

"…Fantasy stuff! Mythological stuff!"

"What things could be mythological for wizards?"

"Errrr…."

"Come on, let us see," Kurama said with a smile.

"Um… I can't! This is a really old, delicate book, and Madam Pince would kill me if I let anyone else touch it or heighten the risk of it getting damaged. I'm sure you underst—HEY!" She swallowed when Hiei whisked the book out of her slack arms and stared at the cover with Kurama. The three humans held their breath.

"Vampires?" Kurama said with a blink. "How interesting. Why are you looking at this? Just curious?"

"Y-yes, that's right, just curious," Hermione said quickly. "I've never read much on the more sinister creatures but I decided I might as well start now." She watched Hiei carefully for a reaction. The little fire apparition flipped the book open and scanned a page, a flicker of interest crossing his face.

"So all those stories about vampires are real?" he said, turning a page. "Was that Count Dracula person real too?"

Ron, Harry and Hermione looked at each other. Hermione said, "Well, Count Dracula _was_ real, but he wasn't a real vampire… but erm, yeah, vampires have existed for hundreds of years." She scrutinized Hiei closely. "How much _do_ you know about vampires?" she ventured.

Hiei gave her a deadpan look. "…They suck blood. And… They suck blood."

"Is that…_all_ you know?..."

"Hn."

Hermione finally decided to make a leap of faith. She said in a cheerful laugh, "You know, I've been going through that book and I realize that you actually have a lot of vampire traits too. Isn't that weird?"

Whoa. Way too obvious.

Hiei looked up at her, blank-faced. Harry and Ron stiffened. This was the moment of truth…

"I know I look like a vampire," Hiei said finally. "I use that to my advantage. I pretend I am one to freak people out. I enjoy it. I did it to Malfoy just a few days ago."

"So you're not a vampire?" Hermione breathed before she could stop herself.

"Hn." She looked at him blankly.

"That's Hiei Lingo for 'No'," Kurama explained. "Did you three think Hiei is a vampire? Is that why you've been acting so oddly?"

The three looked at the ground and nodded sheepishly.They looked up in shock when a deep, incredulous laugh reached their ears. They had never ever heard Hiei laugh before and now it caught them by surprise. He was still smirking as he said, "I'm not a real vampire."

"We're sorry," Hermione said, recovering from her surprise. "It's just…well…"

"I'm different." Hiei finished for her. "But that doesn't mean you should jump to conclusions and go making assumptions about me. Just another of your many failing qualities." Hermione turned a deep red, unaware that Hiei was talking about the human species in general. The demon sniffed then turned and started to walk away. "I'm leaving. I have an essay for History of Magic class to finish."

"Why didn't you finish it last night?" Kurama called after him.

"I was busy." The fire demon replied with a secret smile. As he passed the Slytherin table, he grabbed a garlic bagel and took a bite out of it before sweeping out of the Hall.

Kurama smiled at the three confused humans. "Your suspicions are understandable. Hiei is not your ordinary person. He's just grown up in a very different lifestyle from the rest of us, and it's affected him greatly. But you have nothing to fear. I'm the closest person to Hiei and I know for a fact that he is not a vampire."

_A monster...well that's different. But definitely not a vampire._

"Okay," Hermione said. "It just seemed to fit so perfectly...but we believe you, Kurama. Sorry for the trouble."

"No trouble at all," Kurama chuckled. "In fact I think that whole thing just put a spring in Hiei's step for the rest of the day."

* * *

Dokkou: That just goes to show you: don't judge a book by its cover. Then again, Harry and the others aren't too far from the truth when they assume Hiei is a vampire...and Hiei could technically be termed a vampire since he's got most of the prominent traits like being creepy, having super abilities, having a flawless face and basically being the sexiest creature I've ever seen. Ha ha. Am I right? Am I right? (Guys, you don't have to agree with that.)

By the way, Snape of course knew that Neville really did create a Revelation potion, but if he admitted that he'd expose Hiei's cover (remember he's one of the few that knows about Yusuke and the others). He doesn't like our heroes but he's not stupid.

Next chapter: I'm WORKING ON IT. I'm at the end of my rope here... but, I might still be able to give you a preview.

Summary: Yusuke, Harry and the rest of the gang are going on their first trip to Hogsmeade. Finally a break! Just relaxin' in town, sightseeing, and showing the new transfer students around. Sounds perfect.

Until Yusuke comes face-to-face with his nightmare yet again.

* * *


	19. Sandstorm's Secret

_Previously..._

_Kurama smiled at the three confused humans. "Your suspicions are understandable. Hiei is not your ordinary person. He's just grown up in a very different lifestyle from the rest of us, and it's affected him greatly. But you have nothing to fear. I'm the closest person to Hiei and I know for a fact that he is not a vampire."_

_A monster...well that's different. But definitely not a vampire._

_"Okay," Hermione said. "It just seemed to fit so perfectly...but we believe you, Kurama. Sorry for the trouble."_

_"No trouble at all," Kurama chuckled. "In fact I think that whole thing just put a spring in Hiei's step for the rest of the day."_

* * *

Dokkou: BEHOLD!!! I LIIIIIIIIVE!!! Fans, reviewers, loyal readers, please please forgive me for taking SO *#%#$^#$ long to update!! I know I told you that this chapter was going to be about Harrry and the gang going to Hogsmeade but my brain is fizzling and shorting out. THEREFORE there is a change of plans-- I am giving you THIS chapter instead to occupy you until i can advance in my writing. THANK you for the reviews which inspired me to get off my lazy butt and get to typing. Now, I order you to enjoy this chapter. Sorry if it's too Hiei-centered.... just leave a flame and I'll douse it if it annoys you that much.

Alright, I know a lot of you like Sandstorm and that I haven't put her in too much. Therefore, as compensation, this chapter is all about her! Well, and Hiei and Kuwabara. _Working together!_

Kitties!!

* * *

Sandstorm's Secret

"Lessee…Herbology through the ages… no that's not it," Kuwabara muttered, running his finger down the spines of the dusty old books on the shelf. He was in the library. Through the windows it was pouring down rain. Occasionally, a peal of thunder or a crack of lightning would roll across the black sky. Kuwabara glanced at the clock: 8:30 PM. He cursed in his head. He would have to return to the Gryffindor dormitory soon, but he HAD to find the right Herbology book. If he didn't, he would fail Professor Sprout's test, which was due tomorrow. Kuwabara mentally punched himself for not getting the information sooner.

"Aaaargh…fine, I'll just take these ones," Kuwabara grumbled, pulling some random books off the shelf. He walked around the giant bookcase and spotted a familiar figure sitting at a table nearby.

"Hiei?" Kuwabara said with a blink. "What are you doing here?"

The fire demon looked up from the book he was reading at Kuwabara.

"Studying. And avoiding my dear Slytherin roommates. Two birds with one stone."

"Whatcha studying for?" said Kuwabara, dropping the stack of books on the table with a muffled thump.

"A Herbology test."

"Ohh! That's probably the same test I have!"

"Whoop-de-doo."

"Humph. Don't get all excited," Kuwabara sniffed. "I was gonna offer to study with you but I think I changed my mind."

"Wow. You have a mind to change?" Hiei droned, returning to his book. Kuwabara stuck his tongue out at the fire demon, who ignored it. Kuwabara sat down at a table a few feet away, grumbling. He pulled a book toward him and began scanning through it.

_Gillyweed…no…Squick blossoms… no that's not it…Chirper seeds…uh-uh…_ Kuwabara's thoughts were interrupted by a groan behind him. He glanced over his shoulder and his eyes widened slightly.

Hiei was doubled over in pain, his head resting in his arms on the table.

"What's wrong?" Kuwabara said.

"It's…nothing," Hiei muttered but a second later he convulsed. Kuwabara set his book down, stood up and stopped beside Hiei's table.

"Do you need to go to the hospital wing?" he asked, worried in spite of himself.

"No…" Hiei wrapped his arms around his torso, his face a mask of pain. Kuwabara frowned.

"You're sick. Come on, let's get you to Madam Pomfrey—"

"It's not mine," Hiei moaned.

Kuwabara stared at him. "Huh?"

Hiei convulsed again. "It's not my pain," he said breathlessly. "I can feel it…through some sort of connection…it's…it's…Sandstorm."

Kuwabara knelt down next to the table so that his head was level with Hiei's. "What do you mean? Are you sayin' you're feeling Sandstorm's pain?"

"Yes," Hiei gasped, "She's in trouble." He shakily stood up. "I have to find her, _now_." He nearly ran out of the library.

"Hiei wait!" Kuwabara glanced at the stack of books, then at the clock and groaned.

_Aw man… I can't let him go out there alone when he's acting like this…_

"Hey, Hiei, wait for me!" Kuwabara sprang up and ran after the fire demon.

Hiei rushed down the shadowy hallway, his Jagan eye flashing beneath his headband. He cast his senses out desperately for Sandstorm's energy signal. She couldn't be too far. Hiei ran down a hallway, following his instincts. Pain occasionally lanced through his abdomen but he clenched his teeth and forced it down.

"Hiei!" The fire demon looked around to see Kuwabara run up and keep pace beside him. Neither one slowed his run. "Where are you going?" the human demanded.

"I'm following Sandstorm's energy signal," Hiei replied.

"Are you sure she's in trouble?" Kuwabara said.

"Positive," Hiei said.

"Rrrgh… alright, I'll help you find her. But only because I love cats!" The two hurried down the hallway until they came to the giant set of double doors that led outside. Hiei pushed one open and the pounding noise of the rain increased.

"Oh come on! Don't tell me she's out there!" Kuwabara cried. Hiei nodded grimly and without a second of hesitation darted out into the maelstrom.

"Oh come on!...alright, alright, wait for me!" Kuwabara sighed and leaped out into the rain. He pulled his wand out of his cloak saying, "Lumos!" Light flooded the ground and he hurried after the dark shadow that was Hiei.

The two sloshed across the grounds for several minutes, during which they got totally soaked. The castle got farther and farther away until its lights were mere pinpricks in the darkness. Hiei periodically froze, either sensing for Sandstorm or waiting for a spear of pain to end. He didn't seem to notice he was drenched with rain. Kuwabara, however, was already shivering.

"Well?" He shouted over the hissing of thousands of raindrops. "Where is she?!"

Hiei's head turned toward a pool of darkness. "Over there," he said. He raced off and Kuwabara squelched after him, grumbling. As they progressed, Hiei realized that his spasms of pain had ended completely. Did that mean Sandstorm was okay or… dead? Hiei clenched his teeth and walked faster. No, he wouldn't allow that to happen. Somehow, against his will, he had grown to like that cat.

They walked for a full minute and eventually walked into a small copse of trees. Kuwabara's light fell onto a small, half-collapsed gondola set between two trees. Its white pain was peeling off and several beams had fallen off completely.

"I didn't know this was here," Kuwabara said as he wiped the water off his face. "We must be really far away from the school."

"Shhh," Hiei said to him. "Listen. What is that noise?" They both fell silent then heard a faint, pathetic mewling noise. Kuwabara's face lit up while Hiei's face got more confused.

"I know that sound!" Kuwabara said excitedly and he headed toward the gondola. As the two came up the steps, the light fell onto a bundle of what looked like rags tucked underneath a bench. There was something squirming within the rags.

Hiei jumped back into a battle-ready stance.

"Relax," Kuwabara snickered, continuing his advance. He set the wand on a chair which lit the entire gondola.

"What are they?" Hiei said cautiously.

A huge grin spread over Kuwabara's face. "Kittens!" He and Hiei knelt down next to the bundle of rags and now they could see Sandstorm curled up within it as well. She was half-asleep and crowding next to her stomach were three tiny motes of fluff.

"Khi-tens?" Hiei repeated blankly. "They look like… little cats."

Kuwabara held back his laughter. "Well _duh_, kittens _are_ baby cats! Haven't you ever seen them before?"

Hiei shook his head. "Are they…Sandstorm's?"

"They must be," Kuwabara replied, reaching toward one of the kittens.

Sandstorm's eyes snapped open and a vicious snarl ripped from her throat. In a flash, her paw shot out and her claws grazed Kuwabara's lip. He jerked back with an exclamation of surprise and tasted blood. Sandstorm licked her claws, glaring at the him.

"Sandstorm, it's us," Hiei said to her. Sandstorm's snarl abruptly ended as she looked at Hiei in recognition—and fear.

"Master," she squeaked, pawing the kittens closer to her. "What—ah—what are you doing here?"

"I could sense that you were in pain," Hiei said. "I came looking for you."

"Well as you can see I'm fine so you can go!" the cat meowed in an unusually high-pitched voice.

"Go?" Hiei frowned. "Out of the question. Where did you find these things?"

"Find?" Kuwabara repeated, trying to grasp the conversation. "She didn't find them. They're hers, obviously. Look here…" he pointed at the three kittens in the nest. "This one is amber-colored and has Sandstorm's purple-tipped tail. Oh wait, two tails… and this one here is white with purple paws and purple-tipped ears….and this one is black with three purple stripes on its back. _Of course_ they're Sandstorm's. I've never seen a purple cat."

During his explanation, Sandstorm's expression had gradually gotten more horrified and Hiei's had gradually gotten more menacing.

"So," he hissed, turning to Sandstorm, who cowered under his gaze. "These ARE your rats?"

Sandstorm let out several inaudible squeaks before whimpering, "Yes." She pulled her kittens so close to her they were almost underneath her.

"But," Hiei said in a furious voice. "In order to have kittens, you had to have…" He grabbed his head with an angry snarl. "WHO!?" he shouted. "WHO IS THE FATHER?! I'LL TEAR HIM LIMB FROM LIMB!!"

"You can't!" Sandstorm wailed. "I love him!"

"Him who!?" Hiei snapped.

"Crookshanks! I mean--!!" Sandstorm broke off and dissolved into yowls, which Kuwabara guessed was the cat equivalent to crying.

"So wait," Kuwabara said curiously. "Your cat had kittens with another cat and you _never noticed_?"

"No!" Hiei snapped, turning on him. "I mean…well how was I supposed to know!"

"Um…her stomach gets huge?" Kuwabara said, sweatdropping. Hiei opened his mouth but no words came out. He closed it and glared furiously at Sandstorm.

"What are you going to do?" Kuwabara asked him. Sandstorm's wails faded down and she looked at Hiei desperately through a film of tears. Hiei bit his lip, stood up and began pacing. The kittens started letting out pitiful mewls, as though sensing that there was something terribly wrong. They squirmed in the nest, pawing blindly at each other and Sandstorm's body. They were so helpless it was cute, and Kuwabara was about to burst with a cuteness overload.

After a minute, Hiei said coldly, "I'm going to get rid of them." Sandstorm let out a miserable howl as Kuwabara argued, "Is that really necessary?"

"I'm not going to be responsible for them!" Hiei hissed.

"But they're newborns! They can't take care of themselves! If you took them away, they would die."

"All the better," Hiei snapped and Sandstorm let out that loudest yowl yet.

"I can't believe you!" she sobbed. "How can you be so heartless?! I…I…" she struggled for a minute then screamed, "I HATE YOU!!" She pushed the nest farther back into the darkness underneath the bench, her meows of misery audible over the pounding rain.

Hiei blinked. Kuwabara stood up and faced Hiei with a dark look the demon hadn't seen since the Dark Tournament.

"You make me sick, Shrimp." Kuwabara hissed. "You've done some nasty stuff in the past but this…how could you just leave three little kittens to die when they have the means to survive right in front of them!? What kind of monster would do that? And they're Sandstorm's kittens! Her babies! How could you do something so cruel to your own pets?!"

"Because!" Hiei snarled. "Because…"

"Because what?!" Kuwabara shouted. "Because what?! Tell me!!" He gripped Hiei's shoulders hard. Hiei's expression had turned from angry to painfully confused.

"I…I…because…" Hiei trailed off with a miserable expression and suddenly Kuwabara understood. He released the demon's shoulders.

"Because you're scared?"

Hiei stiffened, looked around uncomfortably then mumbled, "Not scared… exactly…"

"You don't want to be a dad?" Kuwabara said with a small smile. Hiei took a deep breath and shook his head.

"Hey all fathers probably feel that way!" Kuwabara said to him good-naturedly. "It's nothing to get all uptight about!"

"I'm not the father!" Hiei hissed. Then his angry expression faded. He glanced at the shadows where Sandstorm was hiding. "But maybe I was too rash," he muttered. He lay on his stomach and looked into the darkness beneath the bench. Soft sobs were still floating out.

"Sandstorm?" Hiei said gruffly. "Storm? I'm…I'm sorry. I was caught up and confused… I didn't mean to say…of course I'm not going to take your kittens away from you. I just…" he trailed off, unable to think of what else to say. He had been lucky to be able to say_ that_ much. He'd never encountered a problem like this.

The sobs had stopped but Sandstorm wasn't coming out. The mewling of the kittens was still going on.

"Storm, please. I'm sorry… really."

"Do you promise?" she mumbled.

"Promise what?"

"You won't take my babies away?"

"…I promise. Now come out?..." Hiei pulled back and sat on his heels. A few seconds of silence. Then a shuffling noise…and the nest was pushed back into view. Sandstorm was still curled protectively around her kittens, but she had stopped making noise. The kittens mewed weakly, climbing over one another, searching for milk. Sandstorm gently nudged them closer to her stomach and the mewls stopped. A look of involuntary disgust was spreading over Hiei's face. He looked away.

Kuwabara, however, was having an emotional fit of adoration.

"Can I touch them?" he asked Sandstorm. She looked at him for a long moment, remembering how he had argued for her against Hiei. In fact, it was probably only thanks to him that Hiei was letting her kittens live.

Sandstorm nodded. Kuwabara let out a girly squeal and touched the kittens with surprising care.

"So soft!" he said happily. "So cuuuuuute!!"

"You disgust me," Hiei grunted, still not looking. For once Kuwabara ignored him, still cooing over the kittens. Hiei sat on the floor, leaned back against the wall and folded his arms. His head fell back, listening to the gentle patter of the rain.

"Are you going to stay out here all night?" Hiei asked Sandstorm abruptly.

"Yes," Sandstorm mewed. "They're too young to move yet."

"Why did you have to have them outside?" Hiei said tersely. "You should have had them inside the castle where it was dry and safe."

"I couldn't choose where I had them," Sandstorm said with a hint of annoyance. "I felt them coming and came to this place. It was the best place I could find."

"Hey!" Kuwabara said suddenly. "So that's it! That's the pain you were feeling!" He turned to Hiei with a disturbingly large grin. "You were feeling Sandstorm's birth pains!"

Hiei's eye twitched. "I realize that," he said tautly. Kuwabara was giggling, which was doing wonders for Hiei's bad temper.

"You were like a mommy giving birth to—"

BAM!

Kuwabara's face slammed into the wooden floor and created a crater. He let out a low moan. Hiei stood above him, fist raised, a vein pulsing in his temple. His eye was twitching uncontrollably.

"Don't—push—it," he forced out between clenched teeth. Kuwabara unstuck his face from the floor and sat back.

"Okay, okay geez, I was just having some fun." Hiei raised his fist again and Kuwabara held up his hands and said quickly, "So um, what are we gonna do about the kittens?"

The fist lowered.

"Why ask me?" Hiei said. "Offspring aren't my strong point; they're yours. So _you_ tell _me_ what we're going to do."

"Well." Kuwabara put his hand to his chin, pulling a solemn, private-eye expression. "For right now, we should just leave them here. They're way too little to be moved, especially in this weather. I suggest we move them into the castle in a few days."

"What if someone sees them?" Hiei said.

"So what if someone sees them?"

"Someone might try to take them."

Sandstorm wailed.

"Look, we'll deal with that problem when it comes," said Kuwabara. "For right now, Hiei, let's just go back up to the castle and leave Sandstorm in peace. Okay?"

"…Very well. Sandstorm, are you going to be alright all by yourself?"

"Yes, my wonderful, forgiving Master," she said.

"Don't call me Master."

"Yes, my angelic, merciful Lord."

Hiei sighed. Was she annoying him on purpose? It was actually hard to tell. "We'll be back tomorrow after our classes. Stay here until then."

"Come on, let's go," Kuwabara said. The demon nodded and the two walked out of the gondola into the darkness and the pounding rain. The two got back to the castle five minutes later and stood in the front hall, dripping wet.

"Wow," Kuwabara was beaming. "Kittens! They're so cute!!"

"Whatever."

"But seriously, Hiei, what are you going to do with them?"

"I don't know!" Hiei snapped. Kuwabara blinked and the demon uttered a tired sigh. "I'm just confused," he murmured. "I need to sleep on this. We'll talk about this tomorrow."

"I can't wait to tell Kurama and Yusuke about this!" Kuwabara said happily as the two walked down the empty hallway.

"Actually…I think we should keep this a secret for a while," Hiei said. "I want to decide what to do before advertising their existence."

"Well…okay. I guess they're your kitties."

"Yes, so keep your….they. Are. NOT. My. _Kitties_."

* * *

"Sooo…." Harry muttered to Yusuke and Ron. "Erm…What do you think is wrong with him?"

"I have no idea," Yusuke sweatdropped. The three of them glanced up from their huddle at Kuwabara.

The carrot-top was humming and smiling goofily as he ate his breakfast. He'd been this way since he'd woken up, _and_ since he'd woken up everyone else in Gryffindor Tower with a loud, "GOOD MORNING, WORLD! ISN'T IT A BEAUTIFUL DAY?!"

"I think he's being controlled by a little worm inside his head," Ron said wisely.

"I think he's gone psycho," Harry muttered.

"I think he's just stupid." said Yusuke with a deadpan look.

"HEY GUYS! WHATCHA TALKIN' ABOUT?!"

"AAAAGH!!" the three chorused, pulling out of their huddle and staring at Kuwabara, who was looking at them cheerfully.

"Um, just stuff, you know!" Yusuke laughed nervously. "About homework, teachers, how you've gone nuts, cute girls, stuff like that."

"Oh. That's nice!" and he returned to his oatmeal. Harry's eye twitched. Kuwabara suddenly looked up as Hiei dragged himself into the Great Hall.

"Ah! There he is!" said Kuwabara and bounded out of his seat over to the apparition. His friends watched him go and talk happily to Hiei in astonishment. Hiei grunted something back and sat at the barely-inhabited Slytherin table. Amazingly, Kuwabara sat across from him, still talking avidly.

"That guy's got a death wish," Harry said, shaking his head.

"Or he's really brave," Ron said numbly. The demon and the human talked for several long minutes before standing up and walking out of the Hall. _Together!_

"OH MY GOD IT'S THE APOCALYPSE!! WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!!" Yusuke screamed and fell backward off the bench with a loud BAM. Everyone in the vicinity stared at him, glanced at each other, shrugged, and returned to their food.

* * *

Hiei and Kuwabara sat in the gondola, staring down at the three fuzzballs in the makeshift nest.

"Awwww, they're adorable!!" Kuwabara gushed as the black kitten with purple stripes blindly waved a tiny paw in the air.

"Oaf, _how many times_ are you going to say that?" Hiei growled, crossing his arms in irritation.

"…I don't know!!"

The demon sighed.

"Hey, Sandstorm, I brought you something," Kuwabara said. Sandstorm's ears perked up curiously. Kuwabara dug in his pocket and pulled out a small baked fish. Sandstorm half-stood up. Kuwabara offered the fish to her and she gulped it down eagerly. She looked at Kuwabara beseechingly. He laughed. "Don't worry, I brought more." He pulled out several more tidbits wrapped in a napkin and hand-fed the light-brown cat. After she had eaten everything in the napkin she purred and licked Kuwabara's hand. He squealed.

"Hey look! She likes me now!"

"I doubt it. I think she's just trying to eat you."

"Don't kid yourself, Shrimpy," said Kuwabara smugly. "You're just jealous."

"Jealous? Of you?" Hiei snorted. "Don't make me retch." He paused as one of the kittens, the white one with purple paws and ears, fell out of the nest and clumsily dragged itself across the floor, mewling. Its tiny head swung sightlessly and its pink jaws parted, showing a toothless mouth. It was dragging itself toward Hiei. The demon knelt down and almost unconsciously held his hand out. Suddenly the kitten turned and started heading straight toward a small hole in the decrepit wooden floor. Its front paws just stepped into open air before Hiei shot his hand out and nudged the kitten back to safe ground. It rolled on its back and mewled pathetically. Hiei sighed and awkwardly picked the kitten up. It fit easily in just one of his hands. Its fur was so thin that Hiei could see its pink skin underneath. Its ears were extremely small and its eye bulged slightly beneath its locked eyelids. It was almost ugly. Yet, looking down at it, Hiei felt a very strange rush of emotion. Like the feeling he got whenever he looked at Yukina; a desire to protect, an instinct to love.

He let out a revolted noise, causing Sandstorm and Kuwabara stared at him.

"What is it?" Kuwabara said.

"Nothing," Hiei muttered, gently setting the kitten back in the nest by Sandstorm's stomach. "When can we move them to the castle? I don't like this place. It's too open. Unsafe."

"Not for another week," Kuwabara replied. "Don't worry," he added at the look on Hiei's face, "That's not too long, and honestly I think they'll be just fine here. Sandstorm's a good mom. She'll make sure nothing happens to them."

* * *

Five days passed. Hiei and Kuwabara visited the kittens every afternoon for an hour at least. Yusuke, Harry, Kurama, and the other Gryffindors were completely nonplussed by this odd, sudden companionship the two Spirit Detectives were sharing. But whenever they were interrogated with it, Hiei and Kuwabara would shrug it off and vaguely change the subject.

Friday morning came, bringing disaster with it.

"Wow…look at all the water."

"It hasn't rained this hard in months."

"I bet the lake is going to overflow."

Kuwabara groggily pried his eyes open to see Harry, Ron and Neville standing by the window in their pajamas. He slid out of bed and walked over, yawning.

"Whatcha guys talkin' 'bout?" he said sleepily, rubbing his eyes.

"Look outside," Harry said. "It's a downpour." Kuwabara stared out the window. Fat, heavy drops of rain was pounding against the stone walls with a dull roar. Downpour. Downpour. Kuwabara blinked slowly. That meant something…what did it mean?

His eyes snapped open and he gasped.

"What's wrong?" Neville said as Kuwabara began to dress at top-speed.

"Hungry!" Kuwabara gasped, jerking his robe on backward. "Food food food!" He zoomed out the door and down the circular staircase before his roommates could say another word.

As Kuwabara rounded a corner and emerged into the hall outside the Great Hall he almost ran smack into Hiei. The two looked at each other, wide-eyed.

"The kittens!" They gasped together. As one, they spun and sprinted down the hall toward the giant double doors that led outside.

As they skidded around a corner they spotted the doors fifty feet away—_just fifty feet away—_

"Jaganshi! Kuwabara!" a familiar cold voice rang out. The two skidded to a halt and looked around.

Snape was swooping toward them, the usual sneer fixed on his face.

"And where on earth would you two be running off to together?" the teacher said delicately.

"Umm," Kuwabara stammered. "Umm… well…."

"We left our books outside yesterday," Hiei said swiftly. "We were studying under that tree by the lake and left our Herbology and Divination textbooks there. We didn't know it was going to rain so we didn't give it much thought." Kuwabara nodded vigorously as he spoke, but it sounded like a weak excuse, even to him.

Snape looked utterly unconvinced. "I see. Well that's really too bad, because first period begins in two minutes. I suppose you will both just have to go without your books today."

"But, Professor—"

"No arguments, Mr. Kuwabara, or I shall give you a detention. Now turn around and report to your classes. _Do not_ give me that look, Jaganshi," he added with a hint of menace.

So the human and the demon had no choice but to sullenly turn around and obey. But as they dragged themselves up the hallway with Snape behind them like a jailor leading his prisoners, they looked out the rain-drenched windows and felt their hearts sink.

* * *

Kuwabara and Hiei could not sit still all day long. They both drew a lot of stares from their individual classes due to their fidgeting and frustrated noises. The day dragged on at a painfully slow rate and the two constantly looked out the windows, mentally begging the rain to stop. The rain promptly ignored them.

During the last class of the day, Defense Against the Dark Arts with Umbridge, Kuwabara stopped copying a useless paragraph in his textbook and put his head on the desk in an agony of helplessness. He looked at the clock. Five minutes. Five long minutes before the day was over.

"Geez, Kuwabara," Yusuke murmured to his friend when Umbridge was out of earshot. "What the hell is wrong with you? You sick?"

"Yes," the carrot-top moaned. "Sick with fear." Yusuke gave him an odd look.

Kuwabara's nails dug into the desk as his eyes followed the second hand's jerky circle. Tick…ten…tick…eight…tick…six…tick…four…tick…two…tick…BRINNNGGG!!

Kuwabara grabbed his bag and raced out the door like a raging hurricane, almost knocking Neville off his feet. He sprinted down the hallway, heading straight for the double doors that led outside. As they came into view, he sensed another presence draw up next to him and keep perfect pace with him. He didn't bother looking around; he knew who it was.

Hiei and Kuwabara exploded out the doors and stood on the steps, looking at the chaos before them in horror.

The grounds before them were completely flooded. The grass wasn't even visible. A few flowers that had managed to stay in bloom were up to their blossoms in water. The sky was a murderous dark gray color, and the rain that fell down allowed a diameter of only a few feet of visibility. Hiei and Kuwabara leaped down the steps together and ran across the shallow lake, sending up geysers of water behind them. Within minutes, they were both soaked to the bone, but they didn't care.

They sloshed into the copse of trees and spotted the white gondola. Or what was left of it.

"Oh no," Kuwabara said weakly. "No…no…no."

The gondola had completely collapsed. The red roof was crumpled against the trees around it. Planks of white wood floated in a two-foot-deep flood of water. And it was only getting higher. Hiei and Kuwabara numbly watched the remains of a nest of rags float by in the water.

Hiei cupped his hands to his mouth and shouted, "_Sandstorm!! Sandstorm where are you?!"_

"Kids!!" Kuwabara yelled, wading into the flood. "Come on!! Someone answer me!" He desperately searched among the floating debris. The water too wasn't deep to him, but it was more than deep enough to drown a cat and definitely some newborn kittens.

Hiei leaped into the water with a splash and braced his hands underneath the collapsed roof. He bared his teeth and snarled as he strained to lift it. With a creaking noise and thousands of drops of water, the circle of wood was slowly lifted into the air. But there was nothing underneath it.

"Sandstorm!!" Hiei dropped the roof with a splash and leaped on top of it. He turned in a circle and stared at the raging water that surrounded him. "SANDSTORRRRRM!!"

"Master!" Hiei's head snapped around at the faint noise that was almost lost in the pounding rain. But he heard it. He definitely heard it. "Master! Master! Hiei! Help me!" Without a second of hesitation Hiei launched into the freezing water and called to Kuwabara, "I hear her!! Over here!!" He led the way to a hunched old tree with a gnarled trunk and twisting, bare branches. The tree had almost been torn out of its roots by the flood and now only the topmost branches were above the water.

And clinging to one thin branch, half- in and half-out of the water, soaking wet and looking half-drowned, was Sandstorm and her kittens. Sandstorm had the black kitten in her mouth by his scruff. The white one was wrapped tightly by her tail, struggling to keep it above the surface of the water and the amber-colored one was pinned to her chest by one of her front paws.

Her terrified green eyes locked on Hiei's red ones and the demon felt a rush of protectiveness, and fury at all the water around them. He and Kuwabara waded to the tree in the three-foot-deep flood and grabbed onto the branches.

"Are you alright?" Hiei shouted above the hissing rain. Sandstorm nodded her head and as she did so, she lost her oral grip on the black kitten. Kuwabara dove forward and caught the kitten a second before it splashed in the water.

"Let's get out of here!" Kuwabara yelled and pulled the white kitten out of Sandstom's tail's grip. Hiei carefully took and held the amber kitten in one arm and held the other out to Sandstorm. "Get on my shoulder, hurry!" Sandstorm stood up on the branch, trembling, then collapsed back down, exhausted.

"I can't!" she wailed. Hiei squared his jaw, wrapped his free arm around her and held her close to his chest. She buried her wet face into his soaked black robe, petrified with fear.

"Come on before we drown!" Kuwabara yelled, leading the way out of the trees. Hiei followed, struggling a lot more against the flood because of his small stature. Whereas Kuwabara was in water midway up his thighs, Hiei was struggling in water at his waist. But there was a burning flame of determination inside him and he absolutely refused to let a little H2O get the better of him.

After almost ten exhausting minutes, Hiei and Kuwabara dragged themselves out of the raging water and onto the steps in front of the double doors. They shoved the doors open with their shoulders and stumbled inside, breathing hard and dripping wet. Thankfully, the corridor was empty.

"Now what?" Kuwabara panted. "We saved the kittens but where can we take them now?"

Hiei glanced down at the amber-colored kitten in his arm. Its eyes still hadn't even opened, but, wet and bedraggled as it was, it looked dead. Hiei's glance shifted to Sandstorm. Her wide green eyes were staring at him, helpless, terrified.

"I know just the place," Hiei said. "Follow me."

* * *

Dokkou: Poor little kitties. Poor Sandstorm. This is the first time Hiei and Kuwabara have worked together on something and they're doing pretty well, wouldn't you say? Oh man... I'm sorry if Hiei was REALLY OOC in this chapter... I think I overdid it. A LOT. SORRY!!!!

Next chapter: Kitty-Cat Roundup

Summary: The kittens are safe... until they get bored and run off in the middle of the night! Now Kuwabara, Sandstorm and Hiei must scour the castle and find them before anyone else does. And Daddy is coming along for the ride too.

* * *


	20. KittyCat Roundup

_Previously...  
_

_"Let's get out of here!" Kuwabara yelled and pulled the white kitten out of Sandstom's tail's grip. Hiei carefully took and held the amber kitten in one arm and held the other out to Sandstorm. "Get on my shoulder, hurry!" Sandstorm stood up on the branch, trembling, then collapsed back down, exhausted._

_"I can't!" she wailed. Hiei set his jaw, wrapped his free arm around her and held her close to his chest. She buried her wet face into his soaked black robe, petrified with fear._

_"Come on before we drown!" Kuwabara yelled, leading the way out of the trees. Hiei followed, struggling a lot more against the flood because of his small stature. Whereas Kuwabara was in water midway up his thighs, Hiei was struggling in water at his waist. But there was a burning flame of determination inside him and he absolutely refused to let a little H2O get the better of him._

_After almost ten exhausting minutes, Hiei and Kuwabara dragged themselves out of the raging water and onto the steps in front of the double doors. They shoved the doors open with their shoulders and stumbled inside, breathing hard and dripping half a lake onto the floor. Thankfully, the corridor was empty._

_"Now what?" Kuwabara panted. "We saved the kittens but where can we take them now?"_

_Hiei glanced down at the amber-colored kitten in his arm. Its eyes still hadn't even opened, but, wet and bedraggled as it was, it looked dead. Hiei's glance shifted to Sandstorm. Her wide green eyes were staring at him, helpless, terrified._

_"I know just the place," Hiei said. "Follow me."_

* * *

Dokkou: Poor Kitties.... well, sorry everyone, I'm sort of depressed. Looking back through this story I see a lot of mistakes which were brought to my attention by some... extremely observant reviewers.... I kinda want to go die.... (flops over) but if you can wade through all my horrible mistakes and get over the fact that I am an appalling writer who makes such dumb mistakes, enjoy this chapter... ... ..

* * *

Kitty-Cat Roundup

_I need a nursery,_ Hiei thought as he raced down a corridor. _A secret place that no one can find except us. Now, now now!_ As he skidded around a corner, he saw a small door finish forming in the gray stone wall ahead. The door was almost the exact same color as the stone, as though it was trying to be unnoticeable and secretive.

"Where are we going?" Kuwabara panted behind him.

"We're here," Hiei said, stopping in front of the door. He shifted Sandstorm more onto his shoulder and held onto the amber kitten tightly. He reached toward the doorknob and pushed the door open.

The room before them was rather small and looked like it was made specifically for cats. There was a huge pile of cushions in a corner and brightly-colored toys scattered on the floor. A glass cabinet full of various cat foods stood in a corner. An enormous cat jungle-gym took up an entire wall, filled with cubbies, ropes, tubes, and ledges. Fish- and bird-shaped plush figurines hung from the ceiling.

"Wow," Kuwabara said, looking around in amazement. "How did you find this place?"

"I'll tell you later," Hiei grunted, setting Sandstorm and the amber-colored kitten in the pile of cushions. Kuwabara did the same with the black and the white kitten. Sandstorm buried her face in the soft, feathery pillows and let out a meow of relief.

"Are we safe?" she said to Hiei, who was reaching into another cabinet and pulling out a towel.

"Yes, he replied, rubbing his hair with the towel. He glanced at Kuwabara. The human was staring up at the hanging decorations from the ceiling, his mouth slightly open. Hiei rolled his eyes and threw another towel in the human's face.

"Better keep that big mouth shut or birds will make a nest in it," he grunted. Kuwabara glared at him as he vigorously rubbed his wet face with the towel. Meanwhile, the brown cat was vigorously licking the three babies, which were slowly coming back to life. In minutes they were all meowing and clumsily moving around, perplexed by the soft material under-paw. Sandstorm pawed them to her stomach and closed her eyes tiredly.

"Thank you," she meowed to Hiei and Kuwabara. Kuwabara couldn't hear her words but he knew what she said.

"You're welcome," he beamed. "Sorry we didn't come earlier. We were held up against our wills." Sandstorm purred.

Hiei was staring at his reflection in the glass cat-food cabinet. His hair was, once again, plastered sleek and straight to his neck. _I'm getting into a bad habit of half-drowning myself._

"Kuwabara," he said. "We need to change into dry clothes and go to the Great Hall before anyone notices we're gone. Our sudden departures have no doubt drawn a lot of attention." Kuwabara looked at a clock that had conveniently appeared on the wall. It read 6:30 PM.

"I guess you're right," Kuwabara admitted reluctantly as he rubbed the black kitten. He looked down at his soaked robe and realized he was dripping on the cushions. He stood up. "But I'm worried about leaving the kittens here all alone."

"We'll be alright, you two go," Sandstorm meowed. Hiei translated her message to Kuwabara.

"You sure?" the carrot-top frowned. Sandstorm nodded.

"Come on," Hiei said, pushing the door open.

"Okay okay I'm coming." Kuwabara walked past him out of the room. Hiei looked back at Sandstorm.

"Stay out of trouble," he said. "Next time you go and try to drown yourselves I'm not going to help you."

Sandstorm purred. "Very well, Mas—Hiei. I don't know how to thank you for what you've done…I love you."

Hiei's eye twitched. "No you don't. You've just got water in your brain." And with that he swept out and closed the door softly behind him.

* * *

Kuwabara and Hiei went their separate ways shortly after leaving. Kuwabara made it to Gryffindor Tower without running into anyone. All the students were at dinner. Once at the Tower, he changed into dry, clean robes and went down to the Great Hall to dinner. The rescue of the kittens had left him unexpectedly tired and hungry.

He collapsed in a seat next to Yusuke, who looked at him in surprise.

"Where the hell have you been?" Yusuke demanded. Harry, Ron and Hermione looked up from their food at Kuwabara curiously.

"I um… I forgot to turn in a homework assignment to Professor Binns and I was running to turn it in before he marked it late."

"Aw come on, this is Binns we're talking about here," Ron said. "He'd accept homework from last year and just stick an A+ on it without looking at it."

"That's not true!" Hermione snapped, which promptly led to an argument between the two of them.

Kuwabara ignored them as he ate his mashed potatoes and gravy. He spotted Hiei come into the Hall a bit later, completely dry. His hair was still drooping a little but other than that he didn't look like he'd just been thrashing around in a flood.

As soon as dinner was over Kuwabara went back to Gryffindor Tower, changed into his pajamas and fell backward on his soft feathery bed with a sigh of satisfaction. He was looking forward to a good night's sleep before the weekend.

A good sleep he wasn't going to get.

* * *

"Oh Kazuma, this date was the best," Yukina sighed, leaning against Kuwabara's arm. Kuwabara mentally exploded with excitement. "I especially enjoyed that frozen chocolate place."

"It's called an ice cream store," Kuwabara laughed.

"Oh yes, of course," Yukina smiled happily. The two were sitting under a huge tree in the park. The moon was full and shining down on them. Little white fireflies were hovering lazily in the air and pink lilies floated on the surface of the small lake in front of them.

Perfect.

"Yukina," Kuwabara said, sliding off the bench and kneeling in front of the ice apparition. "There's something I've been wanting to ask you for a long time." He turned red in the face as he spoke. Yukina tilted her head curiously.

"Yes, Kazuma?"

Kuwabara fumbled in his pocket and pulled out a small velvet box. "Yukina," he stammered, "I love you with all my heart and I would do absolutely anything for you. I can't go on with my life unless you're there too, so I'm asking you, from the bottom of my heart…" he took a deep breath and a blush spread over Yukina's face. "Yukina, will you marry me?" He opened the box to reveal a dazzling gold ring inlaid with diamonds and, right in the middle, a turquoise stone in the shape of a heart.

"Oh Kazuma, I…I…I don't know what to say," Yukina gasped.

"Say yes, oh please say yes," Kuwabara said.

With a huge smile, Yukina said, "Wake up!"

"Erm…huh?"

"Wake up, wake up, wake up! Please!" Her voice was suddenly begging and desperate. Kuwabara pulled back, blinking in confusion. Suddenly she smacked him across the face and Kuwabara felt blood run down his cheek.

"Ow!" Kuwabara shouted, bolting up in his bed. The cat on his chest leaped back, bristling. "Wha—what's going on?" A pillow suddenly hit him in the face.

"Kuwabara shut up," Yusuke muttered sleepily, rolling over in his bed across the room. Kuwabara looked down at the light-brown cat on his lap.

"Sandstorm?" he said in confusion.

"I'm sorry I scratched you," she gasped. "Please, you must help me! My kittens are gone!"

"What?!" Kuwabara shouted, jumping out of his bed.

"I can't find them anywhere!" Sandstorm wailed. "Please help me find them!"

"Of course!" Kuwabara yelled. He turned and bounded toward the door but in mid-air he froze.

He blinked.

Then his head slowly turned around and he gaped at the cat.

"Did—did—did you j-just—_talk_ to me?!" Kuwabara squeaked.

"Yes!" Sandstorm said impatiently, worrying Kuwabara's sheet with her claws. "Please, we don't have time for this!"

"Uh, uh, right," Kuwabara stammered. He looked down at the ground and realized that he was frozen in mid-air. As soon as he realized this, gravity kicked in and brought him crashing to the floor.

Another pillow flumped into his head.

"Shut up!" Yusuke snapped in a slurred voice. He pressed his remaining pillow over his head, grumbling sleepily.

Kuwabara stood up and got dressed at top speed in a pair of jeans and a blue t-shirt. As he finished pulling on his second shoe and stood up, Sandstorm launched off his bed and onto his shoulder.

"Come on!" she urged and Kuwabara raced down the stairs and burst out of Gryffindor Tower.

"We should wake up Hiei too," Kuwabara said as he bolted down the hallway with the cat clinging to his shoulder.

"I have woke him up," Sandstorm said. "He's already looking."

"How could they have gotten out of that room?" Kuwabara said, skidding around a corner and almost bumping into a suit of armor.

"There was a cat door!" Sandstorm wailed. "I didn't even see it! I must have been asleep when they left, I was just so tired… when I woke up, all three of them were gone."

"You don't even know when they left?" said Kuwabara, his spirit sagging. "Crap! They could be anywhere!"

Sandstorm took a tremendous leap off Kuwabara's shoulder and loped along beside him. Her nose skimmed across the ground. For almost ten minutes the two raced down the dark, empty hallways. Then Sandstorm skidded to a halt and backpedaled quickly.

"I smell one!" she said, sniffing a spot on the floor intensely. "The white one! She went this way." She raced off down a left-hand corridor and Kuwabara hurried after her.

* * *

Hiei looked behind a large statue of a troll but saw only dust. He zoomed off and peered inside a short blue vase.

"Here kitty kitty," he called out. He turned and blurred down the hallway, his Jagan eye wide open and searching. He finally paused and leaned against a wall next to a picture of a horde of goblins. He had been searching for almost an hour with absolutely no luck. Not so much as a hair. Hiei looked up at the ceiling that arched high above. They could be anywhere in this castle…. Even his Jagan couldn't scour the entire school. It was just too big, with too many tiny, easily missed spaces that a kitten could hide in.

The demon scowled and pushed off the wall. No, he had to keep searching. He was responsible for those stupid furballs. He blurred off down the shadowy hallway.

Suddenly his Jagan caught a flash of something. Hiei froze and his third eye zoomed in on a spot two floors below. A tiny, clumsy shape was pawing at the railing of a stair case.

_There you are._

Hiei set off, turned several corners and came to a series of staircases that went off in every odd direction. He spotted a tiny, amber figure two staircases below. It was clawing its way up the wooden railing. Hiei darted down the stairs but just when he was about ten feet away from the kitten, a grinding noise filled the air. Hiei braced himself against the railing as the staircase he was standing on suddenly began spinning and connected to a set of stairs in the complete opposite direction of his target. Hiei looked around and saw that he was now about thirty feet away and slightly below the little cat. The kitten was now clinging to the wooden banister, looking curiously at the hundred-foot drop below it.

"Good kitty," Hiei called up to it, "Don't move! No! No! Stay! Stay there!" Hiei watched, wide-eyed, as the kitten slowly began sliding down the banister. Hiei let out a growl, climbed up on the railing and made a thirty foot jump to the staircase the kitten was positioned on. After a flip midway through the jump he landed easily on the railing and saw the kitten skate rapidly down the bar, mewing happily. The end of the bar it was on opened up to empty space.

"No!" Hiei shouted. With a cheerful meow, the kitten's claws disconnected from the wood and it was suspended in open air.

Hiei lunged forward, stretched his arm out and caught the kitten a second after it was clear of the banister. He wobbled dangerously and the dark floor a hundred feet below wavered sickeningly. He managed to jerk his body back and collapse down on the stone stairs. He let out a long breath of relief and glanced down at the kitten cradled in his arms. It was looking up at him with startlingly green eyes and mewed at him. Hiei bared his teeth and growled, "You little rat. You don't even realize how close you came to death, do you?" The kitten reached up a tiny paw and batted at Hiei's nose. He flicked it away and the kitten looked abashed. Hiei blinked.

_Its eyes are open._ He had just now realized. Hiei shook himself and stood up.

"We have to find your troublesome siblings before they get themselves killed," he said to it. "Come on." As he blurred up the stairs, kitten in hand, he hoped Sandstorm and Kuwabara had already found at least one more baby. If the other kittens got into even half as much trouble as this one, they were all in for an early heart attack.

* * *

"She's close," Sandstorm said, pointing her nose in the air. "The scent is fresh." Kuwabara stopped behind her and looked around.

"I don't see her," he said. Sandstorm sniffed rapidly and set off to the left.

"She should be…" she murmured, "Right… ahead." The two stopped in front of a long hallway that stretched away to a tall door. Statues of various wizards and witches were positioned every ten feet or so down its length, each about fifteen feet tall.

And perched on the head of a statue of a wizard with an extremely long nose was a tiny white kitten. Its vibrant blue eyes were locked on the tip of the wizard's nose, where a tiny fly was innocently settled. The white kitten slowly stalked forward, purple-tipped tail waving in the air.

"Gah!" Kuwabara yelled as Sandstorm let out a terrified wail. "Get down from there!" Kuwabara shouted. The kitten suddenly lunged at the fly, which immediately launched off the wizard's nose and buzzed away. The kitten, who unfortuantely could not fly, slipped off the marble nose and dropped to the ground like a stone.

Sandstorm and Kuwabara both screamed. The human raced forward and made a belly-slide that would make any baseball player proud. He shot his arm out and heard a _flump_ as the white kitten landed obliviously in it. Kuwabara's mouth fell open, amazed at his own perfect catch. Sandstorm suddenly ran up his back and jumped on his head, slamming his face into the floor.

"Oh thank goodness you're okay!" She purred, licking the kitten vigorously all over. The kitten mewed and tried to avoid her fierce tongue.

"That's very sweet," Kuwabara said in a muffled voice to the floor. "Now could you maybe please get off my head?"

"Oh, sorry."

Kuwabara stood up and brushed himself off. "One down, two to go," he grumbled.

"Maybe only one if Hiei has found one of them by now," Sandstorm said.

"We can't count on that! Let's hurry and get going," Kuwabara said. He bent and scooped up the white kitten in his arms and, with Sandstorm close behind him, raced off down the hallway.

* * *

Hiei blurred down the hallway, looking left and right. He'd been searching for another twenty minutes with no luck. He had placed the amber kitten safely inside the collar of his robe. The kitten had mewed loudly in protest at first but since then it had fallen into a fearful silence.

Hiei could hear faint noises as the other students began to wake up and leave their dormitories. If one of them happened to come across the last kitten… he didn't know what he would do then.

Hiei almost ran right past the hallway. Only a tiny flash of movement he spotted out of the corner of his eye stopped him from keep right on running. Hiei skidded to a halt then quickly backpedaled and stared down the corridor.

The black kitten was sitting right in the middle of the floor, pawing curiously at a dust bunny. Hiei let out a sigh of relief.

_At least it's not in a life-threatening situation. _

Jinx.

A split second later, Hiei happened to look up at the rafters. If his demonic heart could beat, it would have stopped.

Sitting hunched on one of the wooden beams, lifeless yellow eyes wide, was an absolutely enormous black and brown owl. It was unnaturally still. Its eyes were glued to the black fluffball sitting obliviously on the floor.

"NO!" Hiei shouted, jumping forward, but it was _just barely_ too late and he knew it. The owl spread its giant wings and swooped down silently on the black kitten. Suddenly there was an orange blur and a screech and the owl engulfed something. The owl writhed and screeched as it wrestled with the orange shape. It managed to get free and it desperately took flight, wobbling in the air before it disappeared around a corner.

Hiei stepped forward, watching the orange shape as it shook itself and faced him. It was a very fluffy cat, with an oddly squashed face. Its yellow eyes glowed as it stared at Hiei. The fur on its back was slightly raised.

Hiei's face darkened. "You," he said softly. "You're Crookshanks, aren't you."

"I am," the cat replied in a brisk, deep burr. Hiei blinked.

"You can talk?"

"You can hear me?" Crookshanks said in equal surprise. "Oh that's right, Sandstorm told me that you could understand us."

At the mention of the brown and purple cat, Hiei's face darkened. Crookshanks hissed and instinctively backed away. Hiei took a step forward.

"Then you must be Sandstorm's mate," Hiei said in a dangerous voice. "You sneaky little rat."

"Why are _you_ so angry?" Crookshanks hissed. "You don't seem like the kind of person, or should I say _demon,_ who cares about what anyone else thinks."

"I care when people mess with what is mine," Hiei snapped. "And you have _severely_ messed with what is mine. You must be punished."

"Sandstorm is not your property!" Crookshanks meowed angrily. "She is the smartest, most beautiful cat I have ever met and she certainly does not belong to an evil demon like you!"

"Watch what you say, rat!" Hiei snarled. "I can crush you in the palm of my hand!" There was a tiny mew and suddenly the amber kitten popped its head out from beneath Hiei's chin. An evil look crossed Hiei's face. "Or better yet," he sneered, "maybe I'll crush your disgusting offspring instead. They've caused more trouble than they're worth." He grabbed the amber kitten by its scruff and held it aloft. It let out a pathetic meow. Crookshanks bristled and let out a vicious snarl.

"Put him down!" The orange cat demanded.

"And what if I don't?" Hiei smirked. "What do I care if something happens to these furballs?"

"Because they are Sandstorm's kits!" Crookshanks shouted. "Besides, why would you save it if you were just going to kill it?"

Hiei's eyes suddenly widened. He looked around. "Wait," he said, "where did the black one go?" he and Crookshanks looked around in surprise but saw neither hide nor hair of the little black kitten.

"He must have run off while I was distracted!" Crookshanks cried.

"Great, now look what you did," Hiei grumbled.

"What I did?!" Crookshanks said angrily. "If it wasn't for you, I would have him back to Sandstorm by now!"

"Whatever!" Hiei said impatiently. "Let's just find the little hairball before it gets itself killed."

"It's a he," said the orange cat stiffly.

"Whatever!" Hiei shouted, shoving the amber kitten back under his collar. He immediately ran off down the hallway. He glanced over his shoulder and saw Crookshanks following him closely.

"What are you still doing here?" Hiei said threateningly. "Beat it before I make you into a pair of fuzzy dice."

"They are my kits!" Crookshanks snapped as he ran. "Besides, I would be a fool to trust them in your hands." Hiei bared his teeth, but couldn't argue with the cat's logic.

"Fine," Hiei grumbled, "but when this is over, I'm going to skin you alive."

The two reluctant allies raced down the hallway and listened to the noises of the other students as they began to wake and move around the castle.

* * *

"He couldn't have gotten far," Crookshanks panted after ten minutes of running.

"Yet it seems he did," Hiei growled. Suddenly he froze and his Jagan eye flashed.

"What?" Crookshanks said swiftly.

"Down this hallway," Hiei said, turning down a hallway. They were dangerously close to the Great Hall now. The Great Hall which was packed with students.

"There!" Crookshanks shouted, and the two spotted the little black kitten tottering along a rafter twenty feet overhead.

"How the _hell_ do they get up so high _so damn fast_?" Hiei said in weak amazement. _I can't reach him either. That beam couldn't possibly hold my weight, and the noise it would make would bring half the stupid school running._

"I'll get him," Crookshanks said quickly, and began clawing his way up a wooden statue of a rearing unicorn. Hiei stiffened upon hearing approaching footsteps.

"Hurry!" he hissed. The orange cat heaved himself into the wooden rafter and carefully clawed his way along the wood, his eyes fixed on the black kitten. The kitten was trying to reach toward a spider sitting in its web above his head.

Hiei saw shadows cast on the wall and he bit his lip. A person was only right around the corner. He glanced up anxiously.

The black kitten pawed at the web, breaking several of the strands. The spider suddenly jumped from the center of its web and bit down hard on the kitten's tiny paw. The kitten let out a squeal of pain and fell backward—right off the rafter.

Hiei stiffened as two shadowy figures came around the corner—

Crookshanks lunged and caught the kitten in his teeth and felt nothing but air beneath his paws—

Hiei stiffened in pain as claws sank into his back—

Alex and Marcus came around the corner, talking together, when they looked around and froze.

Hiei was standing rigidly in the middle of the hallway, his face a strained mask. He was all alone.

"Oh um, hi," Alex said in surprise. Hiei jerked his head.

"What are you doing?" Marcus asked, looking around.

"Just walking, do you mind?" Hiei said in a clipped voice.

"Well no, of course not, I was just cur—" Marcus broke off and he and Alex stared as something squirmed beneath the robe covering Hiei's chest. He quickly put a hand to it.

"What was that!?" Alex yelled in shock.

"Nothing," Hiei said swiftly. Crookshanks dug his claws in harder in the fabric on Hiei's back. Suddenly he felt the kitten pull out of his mouth and claw its way up Hiei's back. It wormed its way into the demon's collar and disappeared beneath his robe. Hiei bit his lip and squirmed, causing Alex and Marcus to stare at him. The demon started to back away, saying, "Well, I could say it's been great talking to you, but I'd be lying. See you around."

"Are you okay?" Alex said with a frown.

"Fine," Hiei stiffened as he felt the black kitten wriggle its way down his back. The amber kitten was struggling under his hand and finally managed to claw away underneath Hiei's arm. "Just…fine," Hiei said, squeezing his eyes closed.

"Are you um… sick?" Marcus said hesitantly, taking a step forward. "You look like you're in pain."

"No! I said I'm fine! I ah… I was just remembering that I forgot to do an essay for Divination and it's due tomorrow."

"Oh I know that essay!" Alex spoke up. "I'm in your class remember? I already finished it." She braced herself and went on, "I can help you with it. We can go to the library."

Hiei almost jumped when he felt a tiny set of teeth sink into the back of his neck.

"Cut it out!" he hissed angrily, reaching his hand around and grabbing a ball of fur. A tiny mewl of pain rang out.

"What was that?" Marcus said. "It sounded like a cat."

"A cat? Don't be ridicu—Nnnrrgh..." Hiei flinched when another, much bigger set of teeth sank into his hand.

"Let him go!" Crookshanks hissed in his ear. "You're hurting him!"

"Damn it, shut up!" Hiei said furiously. Alex and Marcus stepped back.

"Sorry, geez, I was just trying to help," Alex scowled.

Hiei finally snapped.

"WILL YOU GO AWAY ALREADY?! I'VE GOT ENOUGH TO DEAL WITH WITHOUT YOU TWO BRATS ANNOYING ME MORE THAN I ALREADY AM!!"

"Fine you jerk!" Alex couldn't stop herself from angrily saying. Hiei didn't answer, only reached both hands behind his head with a furious expression. Alex felt Marcus grab her arm.

"I think we should go," he said, pulling her back.

"Um, okay!" Alex said with an anime-blank look as Marcus towed her away. As they walked farther away, they could hear Hiei's voice saying angrily, "Get off you stupid hairball!" There was a second of silence, then the demon said, "You're going to regret saying that, rat!"

"He's gone insane!" Alex said with a nervous, random laugh.

"I see that," Marcus said calmly. "I'm hungry. Let's go get breakfast."

* * *

"Man, we've been searching forever but we've only found one kitten!" Kuwabara moaned as he and Sandstorm finally paused for a breather. Sandstorm flopped over, panting slightly. The white kitten was sitting in the crook of Kuwabara's arm, who was leaning tiredly against a wall.

"Good. That means we're done." A familiar voice said. Sandstorm jumped and looked around joyously.

"Master!" she said happily, then she froze. Hiei was walking toward her, and padding alongside him was Crookshanks. Sandstorm's eyes darted from one to the other uneasily.

"It's alright," Crookshanks purred, coming up and rubbing along her muzzle. "We found the other two kits." Hiei let out a growl and Sandstorm flinched.

"They've been nothing but trouble from the start," he grumbled. "We should just drown them and get them out of the way." A look of agony passed Sandstorm's face. "I mean," Hiei said quickly, "I mean, well I didn't mean… um… just... kidding?" Sandstorm smiled in relief.

"So uh, where are the kittens?" Kuwabara asked, seeing that Hiei's arms were empty. The fire demon scowled and reached under his robe collar. A second later he pulled out a rather rumpled amber ball of fluff.

"One," he muttered, handing the cat to Kuwabara. He stretched his arm back and reached down the back of his robe then pulled out the black kitten by its scruff. "Two," he said, thrusting it into Kuwabara's already full arms. "Three," Hiei went on, pointing at the white kitten. "All present and accounted for. Let's get them back to the cat room before anything else happens."

"Um, a little help," Kuwabara squeaked as the black kitten climbed up on his head and the white and amber kittens squirmed in his arms. Sandstorm leaped onto Kuwabara's shoulder and gently took the white kitten in her mouth. She leaped back down, purring. Crookshanks jumped onto Kuwabara's other shoulder and took the amber kitten out of Kuwabara's arms.

"Ah that's better," Kuwabara said. He looked at Crookshanks and noticed that he and the amber cat looked a lot alike. In fact almost exactly alike. Hey wait…

"Is this cat the father?" Kuwabara wondered out loud.

"Took you long enough," Hiei grumbled. "Yes, his name is Fluffy the Wonder Cat."

Crookshanks glared at him, set down the cat and said haughtily, "That is not my name. My name is Crookshanks."

"Oh yeah, you're Hermione's cat," Kuwabara said pensively. Suddenly his eyes bulged and he pointed a trembling finger at the orange cat.

"HEY! YOU'RE TALKING TOO!" He shouted. Crookshanks laid his ears back in pain.

"You are a very loud human, you know."

"Uh, uh, sorry. Geez this has been a weird morning," Kuwabara said weakly.

"Can we hurry up?" Hiei said impatiently.

"Oh, right." Hiei stared at Kuwabara's determined face. Suddenly it collapsed into a sheepish look. "Where's the room again?"

Hiei sweatdropped. "Just follow me." He turned and headed off down the hall. Kuwabara, Crookshanks and Sandstorm followed him.

Ten minutes later, the group was standing in front of a familiar door inlaid in a stone wall.

"How did you find this place anyway?" Kuwabara said curiously as Hiei pushed the door open. Hiei was silent as the group filed in. He was silent as he closed the door and as the three sleeping kittens were placed on a soft cat bed. He was silent as he sat against the wall.

"Well?" Kuwabara said expectantly.

"I found it by accident one night," Hiei said at last. "It's a magical room. Whatever you imagine will appear."

"So," Kuwabara said thoughtfully, "If I imagined a big box of doughnuts, they would appear?" The room was silent. Nothing happened. Kuwabara looked around and scowled. "So much for that theory."

Hiei cleared his throat and pushed the door of a cabinet on the wall open. Inside was a large box of chocolate doughnuts.

"Awesome!" Kuwabara shouted joyously. Hiei twitched and hurled the box at him. Kuwabara caught it, unperturbed, and immediately dug in.

Sandstorm was curled around her dozing kittens with a tender expression. Crookshanks hopped up onto the bed and sat beside her, purring. Hiei let out a loud growl and Crookshanks glared at him. Sparks flew through the air between them. Crookshanks' fur was bristling. Sandstorm looked between them worriedly.

"Can't you two get along?" she suggested timidly.

"You obviously don't trust me," Crookshanks said to Hiei, yellow eyes narrowed.

"No, I don't," said Hiei coldly.

"That's understandable. I guess that is how all fathers feel when their daughters form a relationship."

The temperature in the room rose two degrees.

"What?! Hiei hissed. "Daughter?"

"Yes," Crookshanks said bravely as Sandstorm cowered, "You are acting exactly like an overprotective father. Surely you've realized?"

"I am no father!" Hiei spat.

"Oh, no, I suppose not... Now you're a grandfather."

"Rat, you are really pushing your luck here. In fact you're fortunate I haven't already skinned you."

"Yes, lucky me." Hiei let out a growl but before he could lunge at the cat, Kuwabara grabbed his arms and began to tow him out of the room.

"Well, we're glad we could help you get your kittens back," Kuwabara said to Sandstorm. "Good luck. We'll just leave you two lovebirds alone now but we'll come back later!"

"No, we'll stay here and make sure that disgusting rat doesn't do something that will really piss me off!" Hiei shouted as he was dragged out of the room. "I'm going to kill you someday, rat. And if you lay_ one_ _more disgusting paw on my cat_--"

And then the door closed, leaving the small family alone.

"I don't like that devil," Crookshanks said stiffly as he curled around his mate.

"He's not a devil," Sandstorm frowned. "More specifically he's a demon, but he's a good demon." Crookshanks looked at her incredulously.

"How on earth can you defend him? He's threatened you AND our kits!"

"He saved my life," Sandstorm said quietly, nuzzling the white kitten.

"I know," Crookshanks growled, "but still..." Sandstorm purred and rubbed her head against his.

"You'll get used to him," she purred.

"I doubt it," Crookshanks muttered. "I have a feeling that that demon and I aren't ever going to get along."

* * *

"That went well!" Kuwabara said cheerfully as he and the demon made their way away from the Room of Requirement. The door was already disappearing into the wall.

"Hn," Hiei grunted. "We wouldn't have had to go to any of that trouble if the stupid Crookshanks had stayed away from MY cat..."

"Why are you so protective all of a sudden?" Kuwabara frowned.

"That's none of your business," Hiei grumbled.

"Actually," a new voice said softly, "I think it's about time it becomes our business."

Kuwabara and Hiei stiffened in shock and whirled around.

In the middle of the hallway stood Kurama and Yusuke, both with stony expressions. Kurama's arms were folded and Yusuke's hands were on his hips.

"So," Yusuke said with a frown, "would you two care to explain what's going on?"

"Indeed," Kurama said with a note of suspicion. Hiei and Kuwabara looked at each other and winced.

* * *

Dokkou: Oooo they're in trouble now. uuuum... if you guys have suggestions for names for the kittens, please tell me because I'm at a loss. Don't really know what the next chapter's going to be about.... Sorry, but I'll get working on it ASAP. I'm also over my emo-ness from earlier, so don't worry.

**Need kitty names!!**

* * *


	21. Discovery

__

Previously...

"That went well!" Kuwabara said cheerfully as he and the demon made their way away from the Room of Requirement. The door was already disappearing into the wall.

"Hn," Hiei grunted. "We wouldn't have had to go to any of that trouble if the stupid Crookshanks had stayed away from MY cat..."

"Why are you so protective all of a sudden?" Kuwabara frowned.

"That's none of your business," Hiei grumbled.

"Actually," a new voice said softly, "I think it's about time it becomes our business."

Kuwabara and Hiei stiffened in shock and whirled around.

In the middle of the hallway stood Kurama and Yusuke, both with stony expressions. Kurama's arms were folded and Yusuke's hands were on his hips.

"So," Yusuke said with a frown, "would you two care to explain what's going on?"

"Indeed," Kurama said with a note of suspicion. Hiei and Kuwabara looked at each other and winced.

* * *

Dokkou: Oh... oh my god... is this... yes it is... it's.. AN UPDATE!!! INCREDIBLE!! I UPDATED AT LAST!! Well sorry everyone. This chapter was giving me SOOO much trouble... I just couldn't write anything I liked. Until now! I've been working on it all morning. Now feel free to enjoy it!!

* * *

Discovery

"Um… this isn't what it looks like," Kuwabara said quickly. "We were just… uh…"

"Just what?" Kurama said with a frown. "You two have been acting very odd for quite a while and I think it's time you let Yusuke and I in on just what's happening."

Kuwabara looked at Hiei. The little demon was standing very rigidly, and his face was expressionless. His mind was racing, then with a click it settled on a decision. He looked up and met Kuwabara's gaze.

"I guess we should tell them, huh?" Kuwabara sighed.

"Yes. There is no other choice," Hiei said softly. Then he looked up at Yusuke and Kurama and said, "Come." He and Kuwabara turned and headed back up the hallway. Kurama and Yusuke glanced at each other and warily followed.

* * *

"Kittens?!" Yusuke said, his eyes bulging as he stared down at the feline family. "You've been hiding Sandstorm's KITTENS?!" Crookshanks hissed at him, fur puffed out.

"Yes, and do you have to talk so loud?" Hiei said irritably as the sleeping kittens squirmed at the disturbance.

"Oh, sorry," Yusuke said in a normal voice.

"You should be," Sandstorm snapped at him, but all Yusuke heard was a low, menacing meow.

"Oh come on, he said he was sorry," Kuwabara said to her.

"Wait a second," Kurama intervened, "Kuwabara, can you understand Sandstorm too?"

"Yeah, and Crookshanks," Kuwabara replied. Then he put a finger to his chin wonderingly. "But how is that? I just woke up and suddenly I could understand them."

"I think I can explain," Hiei said quietly, and the others looked at him. Memories came flooding back to him in the pet store of his and Sandstorm's first meeting…

"Blood."

"S'cuse me?" Yusuke said, one eyebrow arched.

"You have to taste each other's blood," Hiei said to them. "When I first met Sandstorm, she bit me and drank a drop of my blood. Then she bit herself and flicked some into my mouth… after that moment, I could understand her."

Everyone stared at the little demon in silence. Then…

"That's ridiculous," Yusuke scoffed. "Switch blood? If it was that easy, how come everyone can't understand cats?"

"I think," Kurama said thoughtfully, "that you can only understand the cat language if you drink a lingokeyen's blood."

"Then how come I can understand them, too?" Kuwabara demanded.

"Did you ever taste Sandstorm's blood?" Hiei asked him.

"No!... well….wait a sec…" Kuwabara thought back mere hours ago…

* * *

"_Wake up, wake up, wake up! Please!" Yukina's voice was suddenly begging and desperate. Kuwabara pulled back, blinking in confusion. Suddenly she smacked him across the face and Kuwabara felt blood run down his cheek._

"_Ow!" Kuwabara shouted, bolting up in his bed. The animal on his chest leaped back, bristling. "Wha—what's going on?" Kuwabara looked down at the light-brown cat on his lap. "Sandstorm?" he said in confusion._

"_I'm sorry I scratched you," she gasped. "Please, you must help me! My kittens are gone!"_

"_What?!" Kuwabara shouted, jumping out of his bed._

"_I can't find them anywhere!" Sandstorm wailed. "Please help me find them!"

* * *

_

"Hmm," Kuwabara said thoughtfully. "She scratched me… I guess she could have drunk a tiny little drop of blood then… and she somehow flicked some into my mouth? It could have happened, everything was so confusing at the moment… but if I think hard enough I suppose I remember a weird taste on my tongue…." At this point he was talking to himself and the others had turned away.

"Why didn't you tell us about the kittens?" Kurama was saying to Hiei with a frown. The demon gave an uneasy shrug and Kurama smiled dryly. "Were you embarrassed by the thought of other people knowing about your cute little secret?"

Hiei bristled as he spat, "No! Don't be ridiculous!"

"Then why?"

"…" Hiei's nose wrinkled and he turned away with a 'Hn', arms folded. Kurama smiled as he knelt next to the little bed filled with fluff balls. The white kitten raised its head and blinked sleepily at Kurama.

"Do you know what you're going to do with them?" Yusuke asked. Kuwabara and Hiei looked at each other unhappily.

"No," Kuwabara said. "We haven't really thought about it too much."

Hiei started to sneer, "This would have been solved if we had just left them in…" He broke off when Sandstorm blinked and stared at him with wide eyes. "left them in…never mind," Hiei muttered.

"Perhaps we should take them to Dumbledore," Kurama suggested. "I'm sure he would understand the situation if we explained."

"That sounds good to me," Kuwabara said.

"Best thing we can do," Yusuke shrugged.

"What?" Sandstorm meowed in alarm, "What sounds good? Master, what are you talking about?" Hiei knelt down to his cat and said, "We're going to take the kittens to the school principal. He might be able to help them."

"They don't need help!" Sandstorm meowed with a hint of anger, and Crookshanks's fur rose a little. "They're perfectly fine here with me!"

"They won't be for long," Hiei growled. "What if they escape again? We were lucky to find them before someone else did. Besides, even when they get older, we can't have lingokeyens running around the school causing trouble."

"They won't cause trouble," Sandstorm said defensively, wrapping her tail around her babies. "I'll keep them safe and out of sight."

"Sandstorm!" Hiei said in exasperation.

"What?!" The cat screeched, causing everyone in the room to wince. "Why are you trying to get rid of my kittens? What did they do to you?"

"They took me on a wild chase through the school, that's what!" Hiei interrupted with a heavy scowl. "They almost got themselves killed, and could have blown our cover with this stupid mission!"

"Um, Hiei?.." Yusuke started to say.

"Stay out of this!" The demon said venomously and Yusuke clamped his mouth shut.

"Why can't you just trust me with this?" Sandstorm growled.

"Trust you?" Hiei said dangerously, and the temperature seemed to rise a few degrees. "Why would I trust _you_? You ran off with this _rat_—" he pointed at Crookshanks, who hissed—"Without even telling me! Now look what you have as a result of your impulsiveness! And, even worse, you dragged all of_ us_ into this! It would be easier if…" He hesitated for a second, then went on mercilessly, "if the kittens weren't here at all."

Sandstorm let out a hideous wail of fury and snarled, "I won't abandon my kittens! If they leave, I leave too!" Crookshanks stood up next to her, the fur on his back bristling.

"That's fine with me!" Hiei spat. "Get out of here for all I care! You were nothing but trouble from the start!" Sandstorm's ears laid back against her skull and Crookshanks hissed furiously. Ignoring his friends' alarmed stares, Hiei marched across the room and pushed the door open.

"After you," he said to Sandstorm with a sarcastic bow.

"Now wait just a second!" Yusuke said angrily, stepping forward. "I didn't understand a word she said, but I get the idea. You can't kick her out, Hiei! Just calm down so we can work this out."

"I'm not kicking her out," Hiei said witheringly. "I'm giving her the opportunity to leave. And I'm also telling her that she's on her own from now on." Intense red eyes met narrowed green. "If you need help, don't come looking to me." And with that the demon stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

For a long minute there was silence. Then Kurama sighed and said, "I'll go get him. He's just worked up right now, he didn't mean that." And he quickly opened the door and hurried down the hallway.

"Little punk," Kuwabara growled between his teeth. Then he looked down at Sandstorm.

The small brown cat was stiff and wide-eyed. She stared at the door unblinking for a moment that seemed to last for an hour, then slowly closed her eyes. Crookshanks nuzzled her cheek and murmured, "Don't let him get to you. He was no good from the start and that proved it." He gave her nose a quick lick and stood up. "We should leave," he said softly. "I don't trust that demon. If he comes back he might try to—"

"Please," Sandstorm meowed softly, and the ginger tom fell silent. She looked down at the three kittens curled up against her flank. She gently licked them each on the head and whispered, "You're right, Crookshanks. We will leave, for now. The forest is our best option."

"The forest?" Kuwabara said, his eyes wide. "The Forbidden Forest? You guys can't go in there! It's way too dangerous!" He struggled for a moment before saying, "I've got an idea! Why don't you keep the kittens with me? We can hide them under my bed or…"

"No, Kuwabara," Sandstorm mewed. "That's too risky, and you could get in a lot of trouble. It's best if we just leave." She picked up the white kitten by its scruff and headed for the open door.

"But…" Kuwabara said weakly.

"Don't worry about us," Crookshanks said gently to him. "We are cats. We can take care of ourselves. But we are grateful to you and truly appreciate your help." The cat's face hardened. "And only _your _help." With that, he used his mouth to carefully set the amber kitten safely on his shoulders, then he scooped up the black kitten in his teeth. He blinked warmly at Kuwabara then, tail held high, pranced out of the room after his mate. Kuwabara watched him go, feeling a horrible pit of helplessness and weary anger.

"Huh?" Yusuke said, blinking in confusion. "Wait…what's happening? Where are they all going?"

"They're leaving," Kuwabara said softly. "To the Forbidden Forest. They said that's for the best."

"That doesn't sound best to me," Yusuke argued.

"No, it doesn't," Kuwabara said, and a wave of righteous anger reared up in him. "This is all the shrimp's fault!" he said savagely. "I can't believe he would just abandon them like that! Next time I see him…" He punched the wall of the cat room, leaving a good-sized hole in it.

Yusuke scratched the back of his head and hesitantly said, "Well… in Hiei's defense, what more could he have done? I mean, you two just barely managed to keep the kittens a secret this long; you wouldn't have lasted much longer anyway. And you know Hiei. He's just not the kind of guy who helps people for nothing, even if they really need it…"

"And that's what I hate about him," Kuwabara spat, storming out of the room. Yusuke followed after him and shut the door. As soon as he did, the door began to fade into the wall until only black stone was left. "Why can't he just think more about other people for once? That's why no one likes him!"

"He doesn't want anyone to like him," Yusuke said softly as the two walked up the hallway together. "He thinks friendship and love are weaknesses, remember? He grew up thinking like that."

"Why are you protecting him?" Kuwabara said, turning on Yusuke angrily.

"I'm not protecting him," the spirit detective argued. "I'm just saying—"

"Forget it, okay?" Kuwabara muttered. "Just… forget it. Our first class is going to start soon. Maybe things will get better with some time."

"Yeah, sure," Yusuke muttered. He sighed as he watched his friend's shoulders slump, and the detective suddenly realized just how personal this whole mess had become.

* * *

The rest of the day passed with a peculiar veil of muteness around the four transfer students. Kuwabara didn't say a single word to Hiei the whole time, only gave him dirty looks. Hiei ignored him. In fact, he ignored everyone. He seemed to be off in his own world all day. Yusuke and Kurama, despite their small part played in the drama, felt the tenseness of the secret situation. They were all waiting for one thing; who would go and make peace with the cat family first: Hiei or Kuwabara.

Both held their neutrality very well, even into the afternoon. Dinner was a quiet event for the four. Well, relatively…

"Geez, Kuwabara, what the hell is your problem?"

Kuwabara looked up from the piece of ham he was moodily stabbing to Ron's concerned face. Harry, Hermione, Yusuke, and several other fellow Gryffindors were staring at him in the same way.

"Huh?" he said intelligently.

Ron said in annoyance, "First you go loopy and hang out with Hiei for a week. Today you've suddenly been giving him the death look, and you won't say anything to us except, 'Neh'. What is going on?"

"Did you and Hiei have a fight?" Hermione asked. Yusuke looked down at his mashed potatoes and nudged them with his spoon. It was better for him not to get involved; there was nothing helpful he could say anyway.

Kuwabara looked down at his hole-ridden ham. "Sort of," he muttered. "Hiei and I were… working on this assignment together for a while." His expression took on a bitter edge that the Gryffindors had rarely seen in him. "Then he did something…that I can never forgive. He couldn't have really made it better, but he didn't have to go and make it worse like that. Now neither of us will fix it, even though it's _his _responsibility."

His friends stared at him blankly.

"Sorry I asked," Ron muttered, taking a bite of Shepherd's pie.

* * *

"See? This place isn't too bad," Crookshanks said, looking up at the mossy roof above them. Sandstorm set the white kitten down and squinted around the dark hollow.

"No, I suppose not," she agreed. The cats had entered a roomy tree trunk that had fallen on its side and sunk deep into the foliage. Moss hung from the open end (the other end was closed off by a large rock), providing security and privacy. There was a soft bed of decaying pine needles and moss on the trunk's inside bottom, which Sandstorm and Crookshanks had set the kittens on.

Crookshanks walked around the little area, sniffing at leaves and bracken.

"Nothing has lived here in weeks," he said. "This is the perfect place! You and the kittens will be safe here."

"Are you sure?" Sandstorm asked, pawing her kittens together at her legs and wrapping her twin tails around them. They let out mews of alarm as they looked around their new home.

"Quite sure," said Crookshanks. "At least for the time being. Between hunting I can go look for a better place, if you want me to."

"No no, it's wonderful, really," Sandstorm assured him, and the ginger tom blinked in satisfaction. He went up to her and nuzzled her nose. She purred.

"Think of it this way," he meowed, "We're safer here than with that demon at the castle." At this, Sandstorm stopped purring and pulled away slightly. "Oh come now," Crookshanks said, frowning, "you're not still upset you left him? You saw how he looked at our kits. He was probably going to kill them if we hadn't left."

"No," Sandstorm murmured. "He wouldn't do that…he couldn't…"

"Are you really sure of that?" Crookshanks persisted. "You always told me about how aloof he was from you. He doesn't care about you. Or maybe he does… but not as much as I do." He pressed his face to her cheek. "Please just trust me on this. He's bad news. You can't even think of going back to him." Sandstorm's green eyes filmed over and she closed them.

"We need space, that's all," she murmured.

"Permanently," Crookshanks growled.

"No," Sandstorm meowed miserably and the kittens squirmed, disturbed by their mother's unhappy tone. Crookshanks sighed.

"Let's just not think of this for now," he said softly. "Are you hungry?" Sandstorm thought of all the hours of nonstop walking they had done through the Forbidden Forest, nosing into various holes and burrows, searching for a safe nest to sleep. "Yes," she said enthusiastically.

"Then I'll go out and hunt for something," Crookshanks said, standing up and plodding to the moss curtain that hid the outside world. "I'll be back soon. I promise. Just stay right here, alright?"

"Alright," Sandstorm said, flopping down tiredly in the moss. Crookshanks's yellow eyes cast downward, and his tail drooped a little. "I'll go out hunting again once I find something."

"Okay," Sandstorm mumbled, her eyes already closing sleepily. Crookshanks blinked slowly once, then he turned and pushed his way through the curtain of moss, ready to face what needed to be done.

* * *

Hiei stared at the little pile of smoked salmon on his plate. He nudged the pieces with his fork and his eyelids dropped a little. Upon turning one piece over, it revealed a ginger-colored belly. Hiei's face hardened and he stabbed the piece so viciously that several small cracks formed on the plate. The closest Slytherins (about ten feet away) looked over at him uneasily. Hiei let out a large huff and shoved the plate away.

"I think he's finally snapping," Yusuke muttered to Kuwabara, staring at the little fire demon from the Griffindor table.

"Finally," Kuwabara snarled, stabbing his broccoli in much the same fashion as Hiei. "I hope it's ripping him up inside."

"It just might be," Yusuke said, watching Hiei stand up and storm bitterly out of the Great Hall, hands shoved in pockets.

The fire demon kept up a fast pace as he swept down the empty halls, leaving the cheerful voices and laughs of dinner behind him. He was in no mood for joyfulness. He hadn't been since early this morning, when that despicable rat and the traitor had left him. And that look in Sandstorm's eyes when Hiei had opened the door for her… such pleading, and betrayal… and utter and complete misery…

As he passed a stone column on which a gargoyle statue was perched, Hiei punched it violently. The gargoyle on top swayed, alarmed, then waved a stone fist angrily after the demon.

_Perhaps I was too hasty,_ Hiei thought moodily_. I was caught up in all the tension and surprise and maybe I just didn't handle it the way I should have…_

Hiei looked up and found himself in front of the wall that hid the Room of Requirement. He hadn't even been paying attention to where he was going. He turned and paced the hallway three times, thinking hard. A few moments later a large, forbidding black door appeared and Hiei unhesitatingly pulled on the handle.

He was in a familiar, high-ceilinged room filled with books and, at the other end of the room, a tall arched window and sill. Hiei walked over to it and picked up the memorable black and purple guitar that leaned against the wall. He sat sideways on the windowsill, leaning back against the wall, and absently strummed some chords on the guitar. Doing so no longer hurt his fingers. He'd made enough trips to this room in the secrets of night to be well practiced with the instrument. Unconsciously, he started playing a sad song he'd learned from a textbook. Solemn moonlight filtered down through the window, mirroring the mood of the wistful notes that filled the room and echoed longingly…

With a hiss of disgust, Hiei ran his fingers down the strings, causing a horrible squealing noise. He started playing something else, this time bitter and brooding and the demon was satisfied with playing it over and over into the passing hours.

Hiei's eyes snapped open and he blinked drowsily a couple of times. He was still laying on the windowsill, the guitar held comfortably on his stomach in his arms. He must have fallen asleep sometime in his stupor of depression. He wasn't sure why he'd woken up—until very faint, very fast footsteps sounded in his ears, coming closer.

Immediately Hiei sprang into a battle-ready position, sliding the guitar onto the now unoccupied sill. A few moments later, a creature came bounding into the moonlight—and Hiei was filled with alarm and anger when it was revealed to be Crookshanks, panting hard and stumbling slightly.

"You," Hiei spat. "That you even have the _nerve_ to come here and—"

"Sandstorm!" Crookshanks gasped, "Please! You have to help her!"

The insulting remark Hiei was about to make was completely erased from his brain, leaving his mouth open and nothing coming out. But finally he managed to say, "What?"

"Sandstorm!" Crookshanks cried. "We were in the Forbidden Forest and we had just found a safe spot to rest for the night! I went out hunting, and when I came back the nest was torn apart and there were claw marks everywhere and—and—" he broke off with an anguished wail.

"You—left—her—alone?!" Hiei sputtered, too furious to think straight.

"We thought it was safe," Crookshanks whimpered, backing away from the fire demon. "We were confident that nothing could get to us!"

Hiei let out a noise like an enraged puma. His form became a blur as he raced to the door, but at the entrance he stopped. He turned and looked at the ginger tom and said in a horrible, deadly snarl, "If I EVER see your mangy hide again I will rip out your organs and shred the rest of you to be fish food for whatever is in the lake!"

And with that he disappeared out the door.

Crookshanks sat in a beam of moonlight for a long moment, his green eyes glowing. Then he stood and slunk into the darkness of the hallway, the entrance to the Room of Requirement softly fading into nothing behind him.

* * *

_No,_ Hiei thought. _No, no no no no._ He sprinted down the dark, deserted hallway and turned a corner. The double doors that led to the front lawn lay at the opposite end of the corridor. He hit them at full speed, expecting them to burst open. When they didn't, Hiei ended up getting the wind knocked out of him. He pulled on the handles, but the doors didn't budge.

_Locked?!_ Hiei thought_, but why?! _He craned his neck to look up at the clock which hung above the doors. It read 11:45 PM. Hiei cursed violently. Of course the doors would be locked at this hour. Hiei desperately looked around then raced back up the corridor. He stopped at the first window he saw. He jumped up on the sill, hurriedly pushed the swinging panes open and jumped down to the dark ground, twenty feet below. Landing light as a cat, he raced off across the dark grounds toward the forest. Hagrid's hut with its dark windows passed by in a blur. Without pausing, Hiei burst into the thick underbrush of the forest. He jerked his bandanna off and his Jagan gazed all around. Rabbits hidden in their burrows and birds slumbering in their nests filled his view, but no felines. Hiei ran forward a good hundred feet and looked around again. Still nothing. Again he ran and it fell into a rhythm. Run, search, run search, run search. Always the result was the same.

The night wore on. Wherever Hiei went in the forest animals were woken and became alarmed. The trees filled with more and more noise.

Finally the moon sank below the horizon. In its place rose the sun, steadily turning the sky from black to gold. It was a truly glorious and peaceful sight… but the demon that fell to his knees in the middle of a small clearing didn't see it, for the canopy of branches above blocked all the light and joy out.

For a minute that seemed to last an eternity Hiei stared dully at the dark ground between his legs. A gentle brushing sensation crossed his neck. For a second the demon didn't react, then he reached behind him and pulled the leaf off. He stared at it, twirling it slowly in his fingers. It was dry and brown, with fading spots of green. The little veins in it stood out, like bones. The whole thing was rather pitiful. And yet… it had been great. It used to be green and full of life, and part of something bigger—that tree. Now… now it had been cast off, replaced by the younger, more vital generation, forgotten by its companions and the tree that was its parent.

_But that's how all life is_, Hiei thought bitterly. _We don't appreciate the small things in life and then when they're gone and replaced, we forget about them and the joys they brought us. We only look forward to whatever will happen next. _

_Well I won't forget. I won't forget what is gone… what I so stupidly cast off. Never._

Hiei looked up at the canopy of leaves, at the thin patches where the sun cast faintly through.

_But a new day comes anyway…_

He stood up and slowly walked away through the shadowy trees, his Jagan eye finally closing.

* * *

Dokkou: Sandstorm is...gone?...yes... she's gone. Sorry I didn't get a chance to use any of the wonderful names you all sent me. Then again... maybe there will be a chance to use them in the future.

Once again I apologize for this chapter being so repellently late. I'm sure all of you thought this story was one hiatus. Well it's not. The next chapter is planned and won't take as long to appear as this one did. And if it does, you can complain to my face. I have an account on Deviantart. com, if you ever want to look me up. Here's the link:

http:// zerna. deviantart. com/

but without the spaces. Dumb link-preventer on this website... *grumble grumble*

Next Chapter: _Name Unknown_

Summary: Despite Hiei's cloud of depression, the gang(s) are ready and eager to go to Hogsmeade for the first time this year. Now the story will really heat up, because something is waiting for Harry and our heroes in that little town. Something...not very nice.


End file.
